


Danganronpa 4: Hopeful Skies

by Edgedrick



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: Fan Killing Game (Dangan Ronpa), Killing Game (Dangan Ronpa), Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-09
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:54:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 31,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26912476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Edgedrick/pseuds/Edgedrick
Summary: (This Danganronpa story takes place in what is known as an "alternate universe". The characters, locations, and scenarios do not interfere with the actual canon)Gareth Taylor, the Ultimate Assistant, begins his time at Hope's Peak Academy, however, he ends up getting forced into a killing game with 15 other high school students who also have an "Ultimate" talent
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	1. Introduction (to hopelessness)

**Author's Note:**

> Special thanks to my friend Yosu on Twitter, who helped me come up with Ultimate talents and character names. Couldn't have done this without your support, bud.

I couldn’t believe it. I had been hand-picked by the association at the world’s most prestigious high school, Hope’s Peak Academy. Looking at it from here, it put the other skyscrapers around it to shame. No matter what despair was living in the world, Hope’s Peak stood tall, a monolith of light for everyone, a beacon of hope to be seen and admired by people all across the globe. Of course, staring at it was one thing, but attending it was another thing entirely. You don’t apply to Hope’s Peak. Rather, Hope’s Peak comes to you. And the only way they’ll do that is if you have a specific talent. But you can’t just have that talent, you have to be the best at that specific talent. They call it an “Ultimate” talent.

Ah, sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Gareth Taylor, and my talent is that of the Ultimate Assistant. I have shaggy blond hair, with a large spike on the top that, no matter how hard I try, just won’t stay down. I’m currently wearing a white shirt that slightly hangs over my pants. I was invited here, to Hope’s Peak, to hone my talent. Although, I wouldn’t really say it’s a particularly… spectacular talent. It’s not even a ‘talent’, really. I just like helping people, that’s all. I sorta just stumbled into this role. Not that I hate it though.

Now that that’s done, it’s time for me to start the next chapter of my life. I shake away my nervousness and anxiety, and I take the first step

First step. FIrSt STEp. FIsrt SrEP. Fobhu sygtgd. Iufbiprufheifbeiunl;,  
YFUYFYFKYFYFuhiuguiguigohiuiohgukhdiu vgioumnuvyronveyn  
Brhvhuyyn9t7rfybewvewriuwetrweoyrnuyweinf nikbutflornyquandoFLU

………………………..

I couldn’t think straight. My head was throbbing. What happened? Where was I? My mind kept thinking and thinking, but it was blank at the same time. It felt like I was in a haze. I didn’t know what else to do, so I opened my eyes…  
I woke up with my head on a desk. Did… Did I fall asleep on my first day? No, of course not, there’s no way. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that something felt off. The best course of action would probably be to… 

“Woah, hey, you’re finally awake!”  
“Tch, took him long enough. We’ve been waitin’ for what feels like forever for his groggy ass to wake up.”  
“Heeeeyyy, sleepyhead! We heard you talking in your sleep! You sure said some rude things to us, so you’d better apologize!”  
“Come on, man, he just woke up. Don’t try and trick the guy.”

What were these voices? Who did they belong to? My vision began to clear and I saw that I was totally surrounded by people that looked to be my age, in what appeared to be a standard sized classroom that had a rather large monitor where a blackboard would be. “Hey man, you feelin’ alright?” My vision drifted towards the sound of the voice. I saw what appeared to be a 6 ft woman, with massive muscles all across her body. She was rather tan, with blue eyes and hair that was black with a blonde streak that went down to her waist. “I… I suppose so. At least, as ‘alright’ as I could feel right now.” “That’s good to hear. Oh, I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Jasper Gordin, the Ultimate Bodybuilder”

“That’s good to hear.” Another voice. Once again, my eyes listed towards the source. A boy with dark green hair and what appeared to be a dark blue trench coat greeted me. “Ah, where are my manners. My name is Samuel Herlock. But you can call me ‘Sherlock’ for short.” he said. “Um… OK, Sherlock.” I muttered out, groggily. Realizing my rudeness, I quickly shot myself awake “Oh! Umm… My name is… Gareth. Gareth Taylor.” I exclaimed. “Gareth Taylor, eh?” Sherlock said, with a curious tone. “Tell me, Gareth, would you happen to remember your ‘Ultimate talent’?” “Uh… yeah. I’m the… Ultimate Assistant.” I sputtered out. “Is that so…” He didn’t say it outright, but I could tell that he was contemplating what I said. “Well, seeing as you’ve told me your talent, I shall tell you mine. I am the Ultimate Detective.” Sherlock said. “Wait, so, your nickname is ‘Sherlock’, and your talent is the ‘Ultimate Detective’? Seriously?” “Well, yes, of course. Is there… something wrong with that?”

I guess the irony was just lost on him. “HEEEEYYYY!” A shrill noise sounded out. Just hearing it irritated me. “Enough about you, ya big DORK! It’s time for ME to introduce myself!” I turned my head toward the ear-grating noise. To my surprise, what I saw wasn’t a banshee, but rather a fairly short boy with hair that was all done up into one large “spike”, of sorts. It was dyed red on the bottom, and faded into black near the top. He had a purple tie and a black and white button-up shirt and jeans. “FIIINALLY, you noticed the most important guy in the room! My name is Luke Zavard, and I just so happen to be the Ultimate Superhero!” “Oh… really?” I responded, with a rather obvious sarcasm. “He’s lyin’. He’s Luke, the Ultimate Trickster. And I’m Lyle Morden, the Ultimate Gunman.” Lyle was a rather skinny boy, with black hair and lots of stubble on his face, as well as a pair of sunglasses that only half-covered his eyes. “Hey, it’s no fun if my tricks get ‘solved’ that easily, you jerk!” Luke retorted, annoyedly. “W-WAIT, YOU’RE A GUNMAN?!” I exclaimed. 

“That he is, my frazzled friend. However, so long as my Winged Warriors and I are here, you needn’t fear.” “H-Huh? ‘Winged Warriors’?” I saw a tall man with sunken eyes, pale skin, black button up shirt, vest, and pants, a falcon on his shoulder, and what appeared to be a rapier on his belt. “Ah, forgive me for not making myself known. My name is Brandon Gash, and I happen to be the Ultimate Birdwatcher. As luck would have it, I happen to be quite skilled with my blade. The reason I don’t have the title of ‘Ultimate Swordsman’ is rather… embarrassing.” “Uhhmm… Okay?” I responded. “Hey, dumbass, we ain’t even done yet.” Whoever made that noise was clearly irritated. So as to not irritate them further, I wheeled around to face them, and had to adjust my gaze downwards due to their short stature. She was a small girl with torn-up jorts that went down slightly past her knees, and a white shirt with what appeared to be tie-dye splashed onto it, as well as a cap and a red sweatshirt tied around her waist. “Yo. Name’s Justine. Justine Cassler. Since I’m the Ultimate Parkour Runner, you can also call me ‘Jumpstine’.”

“Can we hurry this up? I’d like to leave this room sometime soon.” Before I had time to move, a blonde boy with a black and white striped shirt, blue jeans, and a skull necklace came up to me. “I’m Dalton North, the Ultimate Escape Artist. That kid over there with the black sweatshirt with the hood drawn and the hair over his eyes? He’s a mute, but believe it or not he’s the Ultimate Rapper. His name’s Hayate Izumi. I’m only tellin’ you that cus he’s apparently ‘put his trust’ in me. ‘Course, he wrote that down on a whiteboard, but… eh, doesn’t matter. Everyone else, say your piece so we can get this over with.”

A girl with black hair in a ponytail and what appeared to be a skin-tight leather biker outfit came up to me next. “I’m Desiré Galica, the Ultimate Driver. Good to meet you.” Next up was yet another girl, this time with headphones around her neck and a grey shirt that appeared to have the design of a game console controller on it. “Hey! I’m Kasey Gara, the Ultimate Streamer! I hope that we can be tier 3 buddies!” “Tier 3… what now?” “Ah, don’t mind her, that’s just how she talks.” Another girl, this one wearing a crop top and overalls, dark blue hair, with a pencil on her ear and a toothpick in her mouth. “I’m Dixie Grayson, the Ultimate Carpenter. I can build almost anything, provided you have the right materials of course.” Next up was, you guessed it, another girl, this time she was in some sort of business attire and had her hair up in a bun. “Bonjour. I am Chloé Chanel, ze Ultimate Perfumer.” From how she spoke, it was rather obvious that she was simply speaking in a French accent, and didn’t really know any of it.

“Hey, not a bad accent, man! You’ve got some real potential.” This one was a boy, with black skin, black hair that was slicked down that went as far as the back of his neck, and well maintained facial hair. “Heya, Gareth! Name’s Jarrett Laurn, the Ultimate Voice Actor!” He outstretched his hand for me to shake, which I of course did. Then, a girl with large circular glasses, a light beige sweater, and short brown hair came up to me. “Um… My name is … Kristina Hall… I’m the Ultimate Blogger… it’s very nice to meet you, Gareth…” Finally, the last girl came up to me. She was wearing what appeared to be some sort of Japanese school uniform, though I couldn’t really tell which kind. “Hello, my name is Asuka Himura. As you can tell, I am Japanese. My English isn’t that great, but it’s good enough to be able to communicate with the others. My Ultimate talent is that of the Ultimate Dancer. Tap dancing, ballet, interpretative: I can do any kind of dance there is.”

“Alright, that should be everyone.” Dalton stated. “Now, onto the real pressing issue. That being, the fact that we’re all stuck in here.” “Weren’t you supposed to be the Ultimate Escape Artist?” Justine dryly retorted. “You think I haven’t tried? I’ve checked everywhere in this room: doors, vents, even the drawers. Nothing opens, and I can’t force ‘em open unless I got a tool or somethin’ on me, which I don’t.” “I’ve conducted a rather thorough investigation as well. Dalton’s right. I haven’t been able to successfully open anything in this room, and I’m assuming that even if we had the proper tools, we still wouldn’t be able to open anything.” Samuel confirmed. “D-Does that mean we’re stuck in heeeere?!” Jarrett shouted. “AAAAAHHHH! WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE-E-E!” Luke responded. “Hey, don’t be ridiculous.” Jasper retorted, rather visibly annoyed, “We all got into this room somehow. That means there must be a way out.”

Almost as if on cue, the monitor began to produce static. Suddenly, the image cleared, and what we saw was a silhouette of what appeared to be a teddy bear. Then, regardless of our confusion, a high-pitched voice, akin to 2 balloons rubbing themselves together, began to speak, “Puhuhuhu! Go-o-o-d morning everyone! I hope that little nap of yours was refreshing!” “W-What the hell is this?” Justine said. “Now that everyone’s awake, I’d like you all to gather in the gymnasium!” “Gymnasium?! You can’t be serious! We can’t even get out of the room, let alone go to a gym!” Dalton yelled. “Hey, quit your whinin’! I was just about to let you out!” Once again, on cue, the walls and ceiling began to shake, and then, as if it were simply a papercraft, proceeded to unfold itself.

What we saw defied even our expectations. We were smack in the middle of what appeared to be a courtyard. There were buildings in all 4 directions, and a sign showing what buildings were in what direction. To the north, there was a “school”. East, an “armory”. South, a “medbay”. West, a “talent development station”. As we were still in shock, a voice broke our stunned silence. “That… thing said to gather in the gymnasium, correct? Since those signs don’t seem to point towards any gym, I’d say the school is our best bet.” Sherlock, ever the detective, managed to drag us out of our surprise. Brandon was the next one to speak. “Hmmm… I suppose that makes sense. Very well, Sherlock. Let us lead the way.” Everyone, including me, silently agreed to follow along and head towards the school.

As we got to the entrance, we noticed a large statue of a black and white cube, and on the black side, there was what appeared to be a red streak. Despite not knowing what it was, it was strangely disturbing. However, despite our uncertainty, we continued onward, into the old school.

Despite the fact that it was called a school, it looked more like a scientific facility that was simply repurposed to be a sort of school. After entering, we found ourselves in a large open space. At the back of this space, there was a long hallway that lead to a pair of double-doors. To our left, another hallway that lead to a “Sensory Deprivation Chamber”, and a dining room. And to our right… “Gymnasium.” I said out loud, pointing in the direction of it. Slowly, uncertainly, we walked forward towards the rendezvous. 

What we saw was… completely normal. Besides a podium being on a stage, that was pretty much it. It was just a plain, normal gym. A gym so normal, it was actually kinda suspicious. That, and the fact we were summoned here by a silhouette of a teddy bear on a TV. “So… We’re all here. Now what.” Dalton said. Then, for the third time in a row, on cue, something incredible, and unbelievable, happened. “HE-E-E-LLO, EVERYONE! AND WELCOME TO HOPE’S PEAK OUTPOST!” A black-and-white teddy bear, with one small black dot on his white side, and a cheshire smile and red streak on his black side, sprang onto the podium.

We were stunned. We didn’t understand what was going on. How could we have? First we woke up in a sealed classroom, then it unfolded, and now we were watching a teddy bear talk. “I am Monokuma, and I will be overseeing your stay here! I hope we can have some fun together. Puhuhuhu.” “Our… stay here?” Desiré said. “Yes, your stay here! Speaking of which, you’ll need these Monopads!” He threw a bunch of electronic tablets into the air. Thankfully, I was able to catch mine, but I did hear some loud bangs, which obviously meant that some people weren’t as fortunate as I. “These bad boys have got everything you’ll need for your special stay here at Hope’s Peak Outpost! It’s got all your info, the rules, a map of the whole facility, and it even records any evidence you find!” “Hold on, evidence? Whaddya mean, ‘evidence?” Lyle questioned. “And, pray tell, what exactly is this about a ‘special stay’, you strange-shaped demon?” Brandon followed. “Oh, you haven’t heard? It was my assumption that everyone had heard.” “Eugh, sacre blue, just tell us! What makes zis stay so special?” Chloé remarked. “Your stay is special, because, well….”

“You’re all gonna be playing a killing game!”

The room fell completely silent. None of us could possibly understand. “A k-k-k-KILLING GAME?!” Jarrett shouted, mortified. “Ridiculous! I won’t believe it!” Brandon yelled, his hand getting ready to draw his rapier. “Hmph! As if any of us would kill each other simply ‘cus you said so.” Jasper stated, rather matter-of-factly. “Oh, don’t worry, you’ll all play along! Whether you like it or not! Puhuhuhuhu!” Monokuma laughed, which sounded similar to nails on a chalkboard. “Man, that was it? A killing game? That’s it? How boring.” Luke said. “Huh? Killing game? Boring?” Monokuma sounded genuinely puzzled. “Killing games are so overplayed these days, man. You should’ve come up with something original, or at least do something to make the game interesting. Why play a game that’s not fun?” Luke said, in what sounded like a lecturing voice. “Wha-? Overplayed? Geez, I’ve had some unwilling players before, but never one like this.” “So, does that mean this isn’t your first killing game? Does that mean it’s any fun?” “W-well, I don’t really make it ‘fun’ I more so oversee the game. Y’know, make sure no one breaks the rules, and-” “SO YOU MADE A GAME THAT ISN’T EVEN FUN?! Aw, man, what a major mood killer. But y’know what, fine, whatever. You won’t make this killing game any fun? Fine”

“I’ll just have to do it myself.”

All we could do was stare in horror, as Luke walked out of the room, looking down at his Monopad. “Grrr… Fine! It doesn’t matter. Everyone, check your Monopad and go to your dorms. If ya don’t, I’ll kill ya, cus I’m in a BEARY bad mood!” And with that final threat from Monokuma, we all slowly walked to our new dorms. While we were walking, Samuel rushed to the front to stop the group, and spoke up. “Alright, everyone. I know this is very difficult to understand, but we have to stick together. We can get out of here, so long as we work together. So, tomorrow morning, let’s all meet at the dining room, and then we can discuss what to do further.” We all looked around at each other, then back to Samuel, and we nodded in agreement. “Alright. Tomorrow morning, in the dining hall. I’m looking forward to it. Have a good rest, everyone.” With that, we all went into our respective rooms. They were fairly standard, with a large bed, a monitor, and a bathroom with a shower/bathtub. Then, just as I was about to go to bed, a bell sounded, and Monokuma appeared on the monitor, and he said; “Ahem, it is now 10 P.M. Which means it is officially night-time. Good night, sleep tight, and don’t let the bad guys bite.”

With that final message, I layed in my bed, with nothing but burning questions swirling around in my head, and eventually, I somehow managed to drift off to sleep…

INTRODUCTION (TO HOPELESSNESS): END


	2. The Silent Scent of Death, Part 1 (Daily LIfe)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gareth and the others begin investigating certain areas of the Outpost, and Gareth bonds with some of his classmates. Monokuma provides them all with a motive to kill.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, thanks to my friends Yosu and Sofia on Twitter for encouraging me to write this thing. I'm working on it as fast as I can. Additionally, thanks to all my friends on Discord saying that this is good. It means a lot to me.

**_Chapter 1: The Silent Scent of Death_ **

**_DAILY LIFE_ **

**CURRENT SURVIVING STUDENTS:** **  
** **GARETH TAYLOR, ULTIMATE ASSISTANT**

**SAMUEL HERLOCK, ULTIMATE DETECTIVE**

**DALTON NORTH, ULTIMATE ESCAPE ARTIST**

**LYLE MORDEN, ULTIMATE GUNMAN**

**BRANDON GASH, ULTIMATE BIRDWATCHER**

**ASUKA HIRUKA, ULTIMATE DANCER**

**HAYATE IZUMI, ULTIMATE RAPPER**

**DIXIE GRAYSON, ULTIMATE CARPENTER**

**JASPER GORDIN, ULTIMATE BODY-BUILDER**

**JARRETT LAURN, ULTIMATE VOICE ACTOR**

**KASEY GARA, ULTIMATE STREAMER**

**DESIRÉ GALICA, ULTIMATE DRIVER**

**CHLOÉ CHANEL, ULTIMATE PERFUMER**

**KRISTINA HALL, ULTIMATE BLOGGER**

**JUSTINE CASSLER, ULTIMATE PARKOUR RUNNER**

**LUKE SAVARD, ULTIMATE TRICKSTER**

**…………………………………………………………………………..**

_ Ding dong, bing bong _ “Rise and shine, sleepyheads! And get ready to greet another beautiful day!”

“Ugh… guess they’ve got a morning announcement too.” I dragged myself out of my bed, still a little sleepy, but ready to start the day. “Alright, before I go to the dining room, I’ll go to the bathroom. I guess I can check the rules while I’m in there.” I turned on my Monopad, and selected the tab that said “Rules”. They were:   
  


  * With minimal restriction, you are free to roam around the Outpost during the day and night
  * After 10 PM, the Sensory Deprivation Chamber, Medbay, and Armory will be off-limits. If this rule is violated once, an alarm will sound once. If violated a second time, the violator will be executed on the spot
  * If you want to graduate, you must kill someone and not get caught. Killing someone will make you the Blackened
  * The maximum amount of people one is allowed to kill is 2
  * If 2 people are killed by 2 different people, a Class Trial will be held on the first body discovered
  * When 3 or more people discover a body, the body discovery announcement will automatically play across the Outpost
  * After a body is discovered, an investigation will begin for a certain amount of time
  * Once an investigation has concluded, a Class Trial will begin
  * If the Blackened is found out + correctly chosen, they will be executed
  * If anyone besides the Blackened is voted as the culprit, then everyone besides the Blackened will be executed



That’s a lot of… incredibly specific rules. But, I suppose that if Monokuma can kill us at any time, I suppose I have no real choice but to play along. With that, I finished up my bathroom visit, and headed out to the dining room.

On my way out, I noticed Desiré and Jasper walking as well. “Yo! You two! Over here!” “Oh, hey, Gary.” Desiré said. “What’s u- wait, did you just call me... ‘Gary’?” “Yeah. It’s just my little nickname for you, that’s all. You likey?” “Uh… well it’s… not the worst, I guess. Just surprised me is all.” “I think it’s rather cute,” Jasper said, “by the way, I love that spike in your hair! Would you mind showing me how to do that?” “U-um, well it’s not really that I style it, my hair just sorta… is the way it is, y’know?” “Hmmmm… Yeah, I think I understand. Either way, her nicknames and your spike are cute. Overall, that’s 2 cute things about you, so I’ll remember you in the “cute” part of my brain.” “C-cute part?” “Yes, the cute part. Allow me to explain…” As we walked down the halls towards the dining room, Jasper explained to me that she remembers things by categorizing them as certain things, such as ‘Cute’ or ‘Tough’. Desiré, Jasper and I grew a little closer today.

As we walked into the dining hall, we were greeted by the rest of the group. “Alright, now that we’re all here, I think it’s time to get down to business.” Samuel said. “We need to investigate this place. I’ve already examined this room and the kitchen, and I wasn’t able to find anything that might give us a clue.” “There are a couple of suspicious places around here. I’ll go investigate the Sensory Deprivation Chamber.” Dalton said. “I’ll go with ya.” Lyle said. I could also see Hayate tugging on Dalton’s arm, which I guess meant he was going with him as well. “Very well. I shall inspect the Medbay. Chloé, Jasper, I’d like you to accompany me.” Brandon asked. “Wait, why do you want Chloé to come with you?” I asked. “Simple: if we can’t see something, there’s a chance we could smell something.” Brandon answered Chloé gave a reluctant thumbs up, and Jasper simply nodded. “I’ll go check out the Talent Development Station.” Kasey said. “Alright, I’ll come with.” Jarrett said. “I’d… like to come too…” Kristina said. “I’ll head over to that Armory to see what it’s all about.” Dixie said. “Mind if we join?” Desiré said, with Asuka behind her.

“That leaves one place; the Library on the 2nd floor. Gareth, Justine, I’d like for you to come with me to investigate.” Samuel said. “Oh! Uh, sure, I’ll join you.” I sputtered. “Sure, whatever, I’ll go with you asshats.” Justine retorted. “Alright then. Once we’re done investigating, everyone should come back here, and discuss their findings. Now, let’s go.” We all headed out of the dining hall, and me and Justine followed Samuel up to the 2nd floor, to the library. 

When we arrived, we saw what looked like hundreds of thousands of books, both packed in the shelves, and piled up on the floor. Books of all kinds: old, new, encyclopedic, comic books. “Uhh, we’re not gonna read  _ all _ these books, right?” I said. “No, of course not. It’d take too much time. Check the shelves, the vents; anything you think might be suspicious.” Samuel said. I decided to check the independent shelf stands, checking various books that caught my eye here and there. After about 15 minutes of searching all these shelves, I wasn’t able to find anything. “Hey, Justine, did you find anything?” I said. “No. I checked the vents. Even tried opening them up. Nothin’.” Justine said, rather annoyed. “You two! Come here for a moment!” Sherlock shouted from across the room. We immediately rushed over to Sam, hoping he found something important. “What is it? What’d you find?” I asked, excitedly. “Take a look at the floor under this shelf.” Sam responded. “What about it?” Justine replied, in her trademark irritated tone. “It’s got scratch marks underneath it. By the looks of it, it looks like it can be opened, like a door.” “So what, you want us to open it?” “Well, I tried opening it, but… it appears it can’t be opened. At least, not from this side.” “Wait, do you think there’s a secret passage behind this bookshelf?” I asked. “I’d say it’s a pretty safe assumption, at the very least. Did you two find anything?” Me and Justine both looked at each other, lowered our heads, and looked back at him in shame. “Ah, it’s ok, don’t worry about it. At the very least, we’ve gotten some info about this place. Overall, I’d say that our investigation was fruitful. Let’s head back.”

We arrived back at the dining hall, where, to our surprise, we found everyone, waiting. “Ah, you’ve returned.” Brandon said. “Yeah. So, how did it all go?” Sam said. “Not too well…” Kristina said, sounding more sad than usual. “Yeah. The Medbay, Armory, Talent Development Station are all locked up. Couldn’t get in, and when we tried, Monokuma threatened us.” Dixie said. “Nothin’ important in the Sensory Deprivation Chamber either. Damn shame, too.” Lyle said. “As if you looked! You just held the door open.” Dalton snapped. “Hey, did ya forget? The door can only be opened by 3 people of average strength. So if I didn’t, you’d be stuck in there, wouldn’t ya?” “Enough, you two.” Jasper said, projecting her already fairly deep voice. “Did you guys find anything interesting in the Library?” “Actually, yes. We think there might be some sort of secret passage in the Library. However, we unfortunately weren’t able to open it, so I think for now, we should assume it can only be opened from one side.” “Ahhh, man! We basically found nothing!” Jarrett lamented.   
  


“Hehehe, sounds like you guys’re having a lot of trouble without me!” a familiar, whiny voice said. We all turned to look at the door, where we saw Luke, standing there, with a massive smug grin on his face. “Oh yeah? What’d you find, dickhead?” Justine said, weaponizing her naturally annoyed tone. “Well, if you must know, while you guys were all wasting your time going to places that have nothing to do with anything, I decided to check the most important place: the wall around this place.” “You checked… the wall?” Kristina questioned. “Yep, and boy, once I saw this place’s big secret, everything started make some sense!” “What exactly did you see, Luke?” Samuel asked. “Alright everyone, try not to crap yourselves when I tell you. Promise me you won’t crap yourselves.” “Just tell us, you little bastard!” Dalton shouted. “All right, then. What I saw, the secret of this place, is that…”

**_“The whole facility is floating in the sky.”_ **

“YOU LITTLE SHIT!” Dalton roared, lunging at Luke, grabbing him by his collar and slamming him against the wall, “QUIT FUCKING WITH US! THERE’S NO WAY WE’RE IN THE FUCKING SKY!” “Yeah! Why would a school like this be in the sky! It doesn’t make any sense!” Jarrett yelled in agreement. “Ungh… I dunno, but tell me, why would a ‘school’ have a Sensory Deprivation Chamber and an Armory?” “You sayin’ we ain’t in a school?” Lyle probed. “Sorry to disappoint, but I didn’t find out about that. I only found that we’re in the sk- GAHH!” Luke was cut off as Dalton slammed him harder against the wall. “For the last time, quit saying we’re in the sky. It’s  _ impossible _ .”

“Puhuhu! Sorry to interrupt, but Luke’s totally right! Hope’s Peak Outpost is currently suspended in the sky!” Monokuma suddenly burst into the room. “Why are you here, you fiend?” Brandon demanded. “Did you come here to confirm Luke? To mock us?” “Nope! I just decided to kill two birds with one stone.” “What is zat supposed to mean?” Chloé asked. “Well, since Luke was the one who found out, I thought I’d just confirm that he was correct. But that’s not the main reason I’m here. I’m here to provide you with a motive.” “You mean… to kill?” Lyle fearfully asked. “Yup! And this motive is rather simple!”

**_“I’ll reveal the identity of the Mastermind!”_ **

Silence. Nothing but complete silence. The possibility of a Mastermind hadn’t even occurred to us. With that one statement, seeds of doubt were planted in all of us. So long as we had the knowledge that someone among us was responsible for all the strange occurrences, we wouldn’t be able to truly work together. Monokuma tore us apart, and he did with just a single statement. We all stood there, dumbfounded. When all of a sudden, a voice broke the silence. “No. We won’t be killing anyone. Mastermind or not, we will not give in to you, Monokuma!” That voice… was Sam. With Sam’s words, we were able to get ourselves together once more. “Oh? Are you sure? You’re not gonna kill one single person?” “Yes, I’m sure. So long as we have hope, we will go forward, undeterred by your schemes!”

**_“Because hope moves forward, even in the face of unending despair!!”_ **

“Grrr…! Fine then! We’ll see how long that precious ‘hope’ of yours lasts!” And with that, Monokuma left. We were all stunned by Sam’s courage. In our stunned silence, Sam said, “Alright, good work today, everyone. Now, I think we should all get some rest. It’s been a rather… ‘heavy’ day.” With that, we all returned to our rooms to rest. After this short amount of rest, I woke up during the night. However, it wasn’t quite 10 PM yet, so I decided to spend a little time outside before I went back to sleep. I walked outside the dorms and went out to the steps of the school, where I saw Dalton, staring up at the stars. “What’re you lookin’ at?” Dalton remarked. “Oh, nothing. Just getting some fresh air before going to bed.” “Hmmm.” For a couple of quiet minutes, me and Dalton just stared up at the studded night sky, when suddenly, Dalton broke the silence. “Y’know… I’m the Ultimate Escape Artist. But… sometimes, I think I just… can’t get away, y’know?” “Yeah, I think I understand where you’re coming from.” “But, even so… I keep going. I keep trapping myself, and every time, I keep escaping. This is no different. I’ll escape this killing game. So long as I have this,” Dalton held up his skull necklace, “I can keep myself going. It helps to remind me that I  _ am _ the Ultimate Escape Artist, y’know? It reminds me that I can escape anything.” Dalton said, tightening his grip on the necklace.

“Yeah! I know that, no matter what, you’ll be able to get out of this place. I believe in you, Dalton. And I believe in your abilities as the Ultimate Escape Artist.” I encouraged. “Heh. Y’know, Gareth, you’re actually a pretty easy guy to talk to. I feel like it’s easy to open up to you. Talking to you just feels… nice.” Dalton said. Just as he said that, the 10 PM announcement played. Me and Dalton walked back to the dorms, and wished each other good night. Dalton and I grew a little closer today.

The next morning, we all gathered at the dining hall once again. “So, the possibility of a mastermind… do you think it’s true, Sherlock?” Jasper inquired. “If we’re being honest, I believe it to be a strong possibility. But, I’m not really sure who it could possibly be.” “Oh, you don’t have to worry about that! I’m the mastermind! Muhahaha!” Kasey joked. We all had a good laugh, but we didn’t get any closer to finding the mastermind’s true identity. 

After we all left, I found myself mindlessly wandering around in the halls. Interestingly, I found myself in front of the Sensory Deprivation Chamber. Strangely, the door was open, and I saw Dalton. It appeared as though he was landing from some sort of jump. “Hey, uh, Dalton, you OK?” I questioned. “Oh! Gareth.” Dalton seemed surprised to see me. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just came in here to double check somethin’. Turns out, I was wrong.” Dalton said. “Anyways, I gotta go to the bathroom. I’ll see ya later.” As he was walking away, I noticed he was missing his necklace. I looked back into the Chamber, and noticed it on the ground inside. I rushed into the chamber to retrieve it, and decided that I’d give it back to Dalton when I saw him next. “Excuse me Gareth, I have a humble request for you.” I turned around and saw Brandon bowing his torso. “Uhh, sure, what is it?” “Well, as you know, I am the Ultimate Bird-Watcher. As such, there are many Winged Warriors that are under my care. However, caring for them all can be rather… difficult.” “So, you want me to help you with your birds?” “Of course. I realized I needed assistance, and as you are the Ultimate Assistant, you are the first one I thought to ask. However, If you do not wish to, that is perfectly fine.” “Oh, no, I’ll help you! I’m just not very familiar with taking care of birds, so you’ll have to teach me.” “Ah, thank you, Gareth. Truly, you are a very kind and open soul. It feels quite easy talking to you.” I followed Brandon back to his room, where he told me all about caring for birds. Me and Brandon grew a little closer today. As I was walking out, I noticed Dalton, quickly darting into his room. Just as I was about to call out to him, he disappeared into his room. 

The next morning, as I was walking to the dining hall, I noticed Jasper and Desiré outside. “Hey! Gareth! C’mere!” As I was walking with those two, and thinking about everyone else in the dining hall, I couldn’t help but think that maybe, just maybe, Monokuma was wrong. Maybe we weren’t going to kill anyone. Maybe no one was going to die after all. That thought comforted me, at least a little. I was brought back to earth, though, when I heard Jasper making some strange noise. She appeared to be… sniffing for something. “Do you two smell that? It smells like some sort of heavy… perfume.” After taking a couple of sniffs myself, it smelled exactly as she described; a heavy, fragrant perfume. “It seems like the smell is coming from…” Jasper began trailing off, and as Desiré and I followed, something in our hearts began to fester. Some deep seeded fear. The kind of fear that, even though you don’t know the exact reason, you can somehow understand exactly what that fear is. As we arrived at the door of the Sensory Deprivation Chamber, that fear took full hold over us. “What the? Why is coming from there?” I said out loud. “I’m not sure, but we should find out.” I tried to open the door, but it wouldn’t budge. “Move. I’ll open it.” Jasper said, cracking her knuckles, and preparing herself to wrench the door open. With Jasper’s ludicrous strength, the door slowly began to open.

What we saw next, we never could’ve possibly anticipated. We saw Hayate, with his body bent in the most bizarre position, lying dead, with blood surrounding him. No. It wasn’t Hayate we saw. It was his corpse. Hayate lay dead in front of us. And there was nothing we could do to bring him back. As we were busy comprehending, a bell sounded all across the facility. And then, as if to mock us, Monokuma appeared on screen, bearing a message for everyone:   
  
**_“A body has been discovered! Everyone, gather at the Sensory Deprivation Chamber immediately! After a short period of time, the Class Trial can begin!”_ **

**TO BE CONTINUED**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	3. The Silent Scent of Death, Part 2 (Deadly LIfe)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An investigation begins on the murder of Hayate, and a class trial is held to find his killer

**_Chapter 1: The Silent Scent of Death_ **

**_DEADLY LIFE_ **

  
  


We simply couldn’t believe it. Our friend, Hayate Izumi, the Ultimate Rapper, lay dead before us. Soon, all the others came rushing into the room.   
  
“What’s going on?! Who died?!” Lyle shouted. “We heard the announcement, and came rushing here.” Asuka said, out of breath. Suddenly, she gasped, and cried out “Hayate!” “What?! Hayate’s dead?!” Lyle yelled. “Who could have done zis atrocious act?!” Chloé shouted. “Damn it… I’m sorry, little buddy… I wasn’t there to protect you…” Dalton said, clutching his fist. “Well, that was fast! Now, let’s find out who did this!” Luke said, with a disturbingly playful tone. “What could you possibly mean by that, fool?!” Brandon snapped at him. “I mean, it’s kinda obvious. One of us killed Hayate. So now we gotta find out who did it in that Class Trial thing.”   
  
“That’s exactly right, Luke! You’re a pretty fast learner, ain’tcha?” Monokuma said, intruding upon the scene. “Now, It’s time for you guys to investigate! And, in order to help you out with your investigative endeavors, he-e-ere’s the Monokuma File!” He then handed each of us of a thin tablet. “That Monokuma file contains all the info you’ll need! Of course, I excluded anything that might immediately out the killer! Now, good luck, and get to it! Bwahahaha!”

After making his exit, we were all left there. “Well, it appears as though we have no choice but to investigate. As difficult as it may be, we have to be thorough. We can’t afford to make any mistakes, otherwise, we’ll all be killed.” “Yeah… but what if… someone tries to tamper… with the crime scene?” Kristina asked. “Hmmm… That is a good point. I propose sentries to watch over the scene so as the scene cannot be tampered with. I shall bestow this role upon myself.” Brandon said. “I’ll be the other guard. Sherlock, we’re counting on you.” Jasper said. “Understood. Before I begin, however…” Sam turned to me; “Gareth, I’d like you to help me with the investigation.” “Y-you want me to help you?! Why?” I sputtered. “You don’t have to worry about touching the body or anything. I’m fully prepared to do that. I’m just asking for your skills as the Ultimate Assistant. Are you okay with that?” “U-uh, sure, I’m just not really as… ‘acquainted’ with crime scenes as you are.” “That’s fine. I just need a little help, that’s all. Thank you, Gareth. Now, let’s begin.”

**\-----[INVESTIGATION START-](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEIZvCOtikQ&t=283s)\-----**

“First, let’s take a look at this ‘Monokuma File’ and see what information is on it.” Samuel took out the thin tablet Monokuma handed out. “Let’s see here…” After tapping it a couple times, some information on the murder popped up. “According to this, the murder occured at 9:30 PM.” “Hey, wait a second, this thing doesn’t have the cause of death!” I loudly said. “What gives?” “Well, think about it: if the cause of death was given, it might immediately give away who the killer was, and Monokuma said he didn’t want that.” Sam said. “Well, if he didn’t want us to immediately find the killer, why bother giving us this thing in the first place?” I snapped. “Well, while I don’t think Monokuma wants to immediately reveal the killer, I do think he more so wants to push in the right direction. Or at the very least, he doesn’t want to keep us in the dark.” I let out a sigh, and recorded it in my Monopad.  
  


**MONOKUMA FILE 1 ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Next, let’s examine the surroundings of the body.” Me and Sam walked over to Hayate’s lifeless corpse. It felt so discomforting, seeing the body of a boy we’d seen alive just hours ago. But I couldn’t let that stop me. We had to continue the investigation. We had to keep moving forward. As we got close, I noticed something on the ground “Hey, what’s this weird metal bottle? It’s covered in blood.” Sam picked up the bottle, and for some reason, began sniffing it. “W-what’re you doing, Sam?” Just as I said that, he stood up and said, “Strange. This smells like it contained some sort of perfume. I think we should take note of this.”  
  
 **METAL PERFUME BOTTLE ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Hey, it’s missing its cap too.” I said. “That is odd. I think we should take note of that as well.”

**MISSING PERFUME BOTTLE CAP ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Now, time for the body examination.” Sam said, rolling up the sleeves of his trenchcoat. “Don’t worry, Gareth, you won’t be touching it. I will, however, be asking you to write down what I find.” “A-alright.” I responded. “Hmmm…” Sam bent down to examine the body. “Have you noticed anything odd about the body, Gareth?” He asked. “Uh… now that you mention it, yeah. His knees are buckled forward, but his body is facing backwards. It kinda looks like how a rockstar slides on a stage.” “Hm. I guess that is one way of putting it. In any case, we should make sure to remember it.” Sam said.

**BODY’S POSE ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Alright, now, give me some time to examine the body. In the meantime, try talking to the others. Oh, and don’t forget to ask Chloé about the perfume” Sam said. “Got it. Good luck with your, uh… body touching.” Sam shot me a look, and I quickly went over to Chloé. “Hey, Chloé, I’ve got a quick question to ask you, if you wouldn’t mind.” “Certainly. Zis is an investigation, after all. Ask away.” Chloé said, oozing confidence. “Well, me and Sherlock went over to examine the body, and we found a metal perfume bottle near it. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about it, would you?” “Ah! Mon dieu! Zat is one of my custom perfume bottles. It is filled with a perfume zat can last for nearly 2 whole hours, and it is a rather pungent smell.” 

**METAL PERFUME BOTTLE TRUTH BULLET UPDATED**

“Well, that explains what the bottle is, but not why it’s here, or why it’s covered in blood.” “Ze reason it is here is rather simple. Hayate asked me to lend it to him.” “Wait, you mean he _talked_ to you?!” “Non, non, non, he wrote it out on ‘is whiteboard. Normally, I would charge at least a zousand dollars just for a puff, but his tiny body, and ze tiny whiteboard. It was so cute, zat I lent it to him for free.” Chloé explained. “When exactly did you give Hayate the bottle?” “Ah, just yesterday afternoon.” “Alright, I think that’ll do. Thank you, Chloé, you’ve been a great help.”

**CHLOÉ’S ACCOUNT ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Hey, Gareth, I need you to write something down.” Sam called to me. “Yeah, what is it?” “There is what appears to be a bullet wound on Hayate’s collarbone.” “Alright, gotcha, I’ll jot that down real qu-” “Hold on, I wasn’t finished. It appears to be a bullet wound- but only at first glance. Upon further inspection of the wound, I found there to be no bullet to speak of.” “Huh? A bullet wound with no bullets? Isn’t that kinda… impossible?” “Perhaps. Or perhaps, it was only a wound made to _look_ like a bullet wound. Most curious…” As Sam began trailing off, I wrote down what we had just discussed in my Monopad.

**‘BULLET’ WOUND ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

After I wrote that down, I went to go talk to our ‘local’ gun expert, Lyle, to ask him about it. “Excuse me, Lyle, I’ve gotta ask you a quick question a-” “About the bullet wound, am I right?” “Uhh, yeah. Did you or anyone else use your gun at any point in time?” I asked. “Nope. Only person allowed to use my gun is me. Besides, my gun hasn’t been loaded since we first arrived at the Outpost, and I can’t reload it ‘cus the Armory’s locked up.”

**LYLE’S UNLOADED GUN ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

**LOCKED ARMORY ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Alright then, that’ll be all.” I said, walking back to where Sherlock. “Hey, Sherlock, listen to this. According to Lyle, his gun was unloaded, and he didn’t give it to anyone. Plus, it’s been unloaded since we got here, and he couldn’t have reloaded, since the Armory is locked.” “Hmmm… this mystery goes deeper than I thought. What could’ve possibly caused this wound on his collar. Especially since there was already one on the back of his head…” “Wait, there’s something on the back of his head?!” I shouted. “Ah, my apologies. I forgot to mention, the back of his skull is caved in, due to some sort of blunt force trauma.” “Dang it… You should’ve remembered sooner, man!”

**CAVED-IN SKULL ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

Something under Hayate’s sweatshirt caught my eye. “Hey, Sherlock, take a look at that thing.” I pointed to the item underneath him. Sherlock reached over and pulled out a small metal straw that appeared to be smeared in blood. “What the? What’s this straw doing here?” “That’s a good question, but I don’t think we’ll find the answer so easily.” 

**BLOODY METAL STRAW ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

As we both crouched there, thinking, a small droplet of some sort of liquid fell on my head. I looked up and found a strange red smear on the ceiling. “Hey, Sherlock, look up there! What do you think that is?” “It looks like some sort of secret hatch. But it’s too high up, and I don't think either of us will be able reach it. But it seems as though it’s rather close to Hayate’s body. Most curious…” “Hmm… We gotta get someone to help us open up that hatch.” “Please, allow me.” Jasper offered to have Sherlock climb up on her shoulders. With relative ease, Sherlock was able to open up the hatch. “So, what’s in there?” I asked. “It appears to be some sort of secret passage. I’ll follow it until the end, and I’ll tell you where I end up when I get back. In the meantime, investigate around just a little more.” “Got it! I’ll see what I can find! I’ll also add this to our evidence!”

**SECRET HATCH ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

Shortly after he left, I looked around the room. I went over to the door, and wondered why it was as heavy as it was. I realized that if I wanted info, I’d have to bite the bullet, and ask Monokuma himself. “Hey! Monokuma! I’ve got a question!” Immediately, and out of nowhere, Monokuma appeared. “Nyohohoho! Ask and I shall appear. Now, whaddya want, my lovely little student?” “I just wanna know what the deal is with this door. Why’s it need 3 people to open? And why’s it only take one person to hold it open?” “Oh, that’s easy. It’s made like that ‘cus I designed it like that. Although, you don’t really need one person to hold it open. You could even prop it open with a twig, if you wanted.” “What?! A twig?!” “Yep. Also, you could always just ask me to open it for you. Matter of fact, I opened up for someone just last night” “What?! Are you kidding me?!” “Heheheh, nope! Jot that down in your notes, stupid! Write it on your hand if you can’t fit it in your head! Ahahaha!” And with that, Monokuma left. 

**CHAMBER DOOR ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

**MONOKUMA’S ACCOUNT ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

After Monokuma left, I decided to check the hinges of the door. Inside it, I managed to find another metal straw. This one, however, was completely stainless. “I need to make sure to tell Sherlock about this.”  
  
 **STAINLESS METAL STRAW ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

Just then, Sherlock walked into the room. “Oh, you’re back. Where did it lead you?” “Well, remember what I said about the possibility of a secret passage in the Library? How it can only be opened from one side?” “You mean that..?” “Yeah. The secret passage in this room… leads to the secret door in the Library.”

**SECRET PASSAGE ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Oh yeah, before I forget…” I showed Sherlock the straw, and told him about the Chamber’s door. Just as I was done talking, Monokuma came on the screen, with his same smug smile and awful voice. “Tiiiiiime’s up, everyone! No more investigating! Time for you all to haul ass to the Monocube outside the school! See you soon, my lovely little killers in the making! Puhuhu! Puhuhuhuhu!”

With that message, we all made our way to the massive cube outside the school. “Well? We’re all here? Now what?” Dalton said. “I dunno, can’t see a damn thing. Oh! Hold up. Do you guys hear that?” “Huh? Hear what?” Justine said. Just as she said that, the Monocube, and the circular bricks around it, began to spiral up, and rise out of the ground, revealing a large cylindrical elevator. “I guess… we just have… to head in there…” Kristina said. We all stepped into the elevator, and when we all got inside, the doors closed, and we began to move down.

Down, down, down. We went down for what seemed like eternity. No one spoke. Our only company was the incessant rattling of the elevator itself. As we moved down, all my turgid thoughts began swirling around in my head. Finally, we arrived at the bottom, where Monokuma greeted us in his usual, vile tone.

“Heeeello, everyone! And welcome to the trial grounds! I hope it’s to your liking, ‘cus you’re all gonna be stuck here until you can figure out who killed Hayate!” He said. Monokuma’s statement stuck itself in my head like a dart in a dartboard.

Someone here had killed our comrade, Hayate. And they had hidden themselves among us.

I wouldn’t let them get away with this. I’m sure everyone else felt the same. We had to find out the truth, no matter how much it may hurt.

It was our will to find the truth versus the killer’s scheme. And it was about to clash head-on. We had to find them. We have to solve the mystery.

**_In this deadly game of ‘whodunnit’, we couldn’t afford to lose. We had to make sure the truth would be revealed. In a battle of wits. A clash of wills. In a deadly…_ **

**_CLASS TRIAL!_ **

………………………………………………………………………………..

**TRUTH BULLETS:**

  * **MONOKUMA FILE 1**



The death occured at 9:30 PM. Death was instantaneous

  * **METAL PERFUME BOTTLE**



A bloody, metal perfume bottle was found missing its cap. Created by Chloé, who lent it to Hayate the day of the murder

  * **MISSING PERFUME CAP**



The whereabouts of the cap are currently unknown

  * **CHLOÉ’S ACCOUNT**



She lent Hayate one of her expensive perfumes for free the day of the murder. Only her and Hayate knew about this

  * **‘BULLET’ WOUND**



A small hole, equivalent to a bullet wound, was found on Hayate’s collarbone. However, no traces of a bullet or gunpowder were found.

  * **LYLE’S UNLOADED GUN**



Lyle’s gun was unloaded since the day we arrived. He couldn’t reload it.

  * **LOCKED ARMORY**



The armory was locked up, so no one had access to weapons or ammunition

  * **CAVED-IN SKULL**



The back of Hayate’s skull was caved in. The cause is unknown.

  * **BLOODY METAL STRAW**



Found underneath Hayate’s body. It is unknown why it was there.

  * **SECRET HATCH**



A hatch that was in the Chamber ceiling. It is rather high up, but the hatch door hangs down rather low when it’s open.

  * **CHAMBER DOOR**



Can only be opened by 3 people of average strength, or by 1 person of above average strength. It can, however, be kept open with anything. Monokuma can open it for anyone, so long as he is asked.

  * **MONOKUMA’S ACCOUNT**



Monokuma opened the Chamber door for someone yesterday

  * **STAINLESS METAL STRAW**



A metal straw found in the door hinge of the Chamber door, used to prop it open. Unknown what it was doing there

  * **SECRET PASSAGE**



The secret hatch in the Chamber has a secret passage that leads to the secret door in the library.

………………………………………………………………………………….

Monokuma: “Let’s begin with a basic explanation of the class trial! You will present your arguments, point out any contradictions, and eventually, vote for who you think is the killer. Now, get to it!”

Kristina: “So… what should we… talk about first?”

Dalton: “Well, isn’t it obvious? We gotta talk about what it was that killed him.”

Desiré: “Why do we have to talk about that?”

Samuel: “Probably because the cause of death isn’t listed on the Monokuma file.”

Luke: “Well, I think it’s pretty obvious what killed him, wouldn’t you say, Sherlock?”

Samuel: “...”

Kasey: “Huh? It is?”  
  
Luke: “Of course. It’s the bullet wound in his collarbone.”

Kristina: “A-a b-bullet wound?!”

Dalton: “That’s right. As long as we know that a bullet is what killed him, I think we have a pretty good idea of who could’ve killed Hayate.”

Gareth: “Hey, hold on! We don’t know if that wound is actually the cause of-”  
  
Luke: “Hey, Gareth, could you shut up? We’re kind of in the middle of pinning down the killer here.”

Samuel: “No, we should listen to Gareth. He might be onto something.”

Dalton: “Damn it, man, you might be the Ultimate Detector or whatever, but that doesn’t mean you can just derail the conversation with your stupid shit!”

Luke: “Yeah, save it for later! Dalton, if you would, tell us who the killer is.”

Dalton: “Well, with all the information we have, I think it’s a pretty safe assumption to say… Lyle, you were the one who killed Hayate, aren’t you?”

Lyle: “So, ya think I killed him? All cause of a wound you think was caused by a bullet?”

Dalton: “Well, of course. You’re the only one here who could’ve possibly caused a bullet wound. Or did you just forget you’re the Ultimate Gunman?”

Samuel: “Hold on. I think it’s too early to jump to a conclusion without talking about it first.”

Dalton: “Gaaahhh, fine! We’ll talk about it, if you want to so damn badly!”

**\-----[NONSTOP DEBATE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJ7g-RQQYzg)\-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: ‘BULLET’ WOUND**

Dalton: “You saw what that wound was, didn’t you, Sherlock?”

Dalton: “He had a bullet wound in his collarbone!”

Dalton: “That means he was _shot with a bullet!_ ”

Gareth: **_“No, that’s wrong!”_ **

……………………………………………….

Gareth: “You’re wrong, Dalton! Hayate wasn’t shot with anything!”

Dalton: “H-huh? He… he wasn’t?”

Gareth: “Sam checked the wound; and he didn’t find anything inside or near that indicated a bullet entered his body!”

Lyle: “Yeah. Plus, my gun was unloaded when we got here.”

Dalton: “Shut up! You can’t prove that, can you?!”

Lyle: “Hmmm… yeah, guess you’re right. But, even if I can’t prove that, I still couldn’t have killed Hayate.”

Luke: “Hmmm… So you didn’t kill Hayate with a bullet, huh? Interesting…”

Jasper: “Were you even listening? He just said he couldn’t have killed Hayate!”

Luke: “Yeah, I heard him. And _I’m_ saying that he killed them with a different method.”

Brandon: “And pray tell, what would this method be?”

Luke: “He used his gun to hit Hayate on the back of the head! Like _pow_ and _wham_! Right on the back of his head!”

Gareth: “Why didn’t you mention that earlier, then?!”

Luke: “Oh, I was just testing you guys. Sorry about that, stupids.”  
  


Kasey: “Hey, don’t call us stupid for listening to you! Wouldn’t that make you stupid for thinking you were right?”

Luke: “Hey, shut up, you bitch!”

Brandon: “Luke, do us all a favor, and be **_silent_ **.”

Luke: “Fine. It looks like Dalton’s ready to pick up the pace again, anyways.”  
  
Dalton: “Yeah… I think I’ve got it…”

Luke: “Take it away, then, big guy! Send this bastard Lyle straight to the electric chair! Hahahaha!”

**\-----[NONSTOP DEBATE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJ7g-RQQYzg)\-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: LYLE’S UNLOADED GUN**

Dalton: “I understand what happened now.”  
  
Dalton: “Lyle went into the Sensory Deprivation Chamber with Hayate.”

Dalton: “And _hit him on the back of the head with his gun!_ ”

Gareth: “ **_No, that’s wrong!_ **”

………………………………………………………………...

Gareth: “Lyle, I’d like you to show us all your gun, if you please.”

Lyle: “Yeah, sure thing.”

Lyle took out his gun. As expected, it was totally spotless.

Dalton: “W-what the?”  
  
Lyle: “Do you get it now, man? I couldn’t have killed Hayate.”

Luke: “Ah, I get it now. It’s all starting to make sense…”

Jarrett: “What are you up to now, Luke? What’re you scheming?”

Luke: “Well, our dear boy Detective, Sherlock, found a metal perfume bottle near Hayate’s body. So that must mean that instead of using a gun, Lyle used that to kill Hayate instead!”

Jarrett: “Man, you are dead-set on pinning the crime on Lyle, aren’t you?”

Sam turned to me, and spoke to me in a hushed tone: “Luke keeps leading the conversation. If he continues to do so, we won’t be able to find the truth.” 

Sam was right. We had to stop Luke’s arguments dead in their tracks, otherwise, we wouldn’t be able to get anything done.

I glanced over to Dalton, who looked like he was about to speak again. I have to get Luke to stop somehow! But how? Wait a second… I think I can lure him into arguing with me. If I can do that, and beat him, I can take back control!

**\-----[NONSTOP DEBATE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHMQMW8WTYk)\-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: CHLOÉ’S ACCOUNT**

Dalton: “Thank you, Luke. Now I finally understand…”

Dalton: “Understand exactly what happened to Hayate.”

Dalton: “Hayate asked Chloé for the bottle..”

Dalton: “And Lyle _took it away from him!_ ”

Gareth: “ **_No, that’s wrong!”_ **

…………………………………………….

Gareth: “Dalton. What you just said clearly contradicts the fact that no one except for Chloé and Hayate knew about the borrowed bottle.”

Luke: “ **_Just shut up already_ **”

**\-----[REBUTTAL SHOWDOWN](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mymjF4AZJrg) \-----**

**TRUTH BLADE: MONOKUMA FILE 1**

Luke: “Geez, you’re really annoying, y’know that?”

Gareth: “Excuse me?”

Luke: “Everytime we think we’ve got a breakthrough, you just keep coming in, ruining everything with your loud voice!”

Gareth: “I wouldn’t have to do that if you would stop jumping to conclusions!”

Luke: “What’re you talking about? I haven’t been jumping into _anything_.”

Gareth: “Luke, you’ve been leading us all in the wrong direction.”

Gareth: “You’ve fallen right for the killer’s trap!”

Luke: “What? Don’t be stupid.”  
  
Luke: “I mean, we’re so close to finding the killer.”

Luke: “ _What exactly is there left to talk about?_ ”

Gareth: “ **_I’ll cut through those words!_ **”

……………………………………………………….

Gareth: “Actually, there is something that we should talk about; the time of death!”

Desiré: “Oh my god! I completely forgot all about that!”

Samuel: “Yes, exactly. Luke wanted us to focus on the wrong thing. And thanks to Dalton, he nearly succeeded.”  
  
Jarrett: “Damn it, Luke! Why the hell’d you do that?!”

Luke: “Awww, ya got me. I was just havin’ a little fun with everyone.”

Jasper: “We don’t have time for fun right now! If we mess up, we all die!”

Luke: “Alright, alright, I’ll keep quiet… for now. Oh, and Gareth.”

Gareth: “Hm?”

Luke’s eyes shifted. They looked more akin to scribbles than eyes, and I could sense an immense darkness hidden behind them; “ **_I’ll be keeping my eye on you_ **.”

Luke: “Anyways, go ahead and talk about your time of death and whatnot. But just so you know, I have an airtight alibi.”

Samuel: “If we’re going to get a clearer idea of these events, I’m going to need to hear everyone’s alibis for around the time of the crime.”

Asuka: “I was out in the courtyard with Justine, teaching her dance moves.”

Brandon: “Gareth was helping me care for my Scouts of the Skies.”

Samuel: “I was in my room, resting.”

Dalton: “I was in the Library from 9:20 to 9:55. Lyle walked in at around 9:35.”

Lyle: “Yeah, that I did.”

Jasper: “I was in the gym, exercising with Desiré.”  
  
Chloé: “I was in my room, creating new kinds of perfume.”

Luke: “I was in the courtyard, taking a nap.”

Kristina: “I was in my room… working on my blog…”

Kasey: “I was in my room, taking a poggers nap.”

Jarrett: “I was in my room, practicing my impressions.”

Samuel: “If that’s the case, then the two most likely suspects… would be Lyle and Dalton.”

Dalton: “Well, since I was in the library for that whole period of time, then obviously, Lyle is the one who did it!” 

Lyle: “How many times do I have to tell you? I am not the killer.”

Dalton: “Jeez, give it up already! We know how you did it!”

**\-----[NONSTOP DEBATE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfVf0RiJP2s&t=18s) \-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: MISSING PERFUME BOTTLE CAP**

Dalton: “Give it up already, Lyle!”

Dalton: “We all know what you did!”

Dalton: “You took the perfume off Hayate, and killed him with it!”

Brandon: “But didn’t Gareth explain earlier that only Hayate and Chloé knew about it?”

Dalton: “Well then, it’s simple!”

Dalton: “Hayate was gonna swing it on the back of his head…”

Dalton: “And Lyle _snatched it off him!_ ”

Gareth: “ **_No, that’s wrong!_ **”

………………………………………...

Gareth: “Lyle, I have something to ask you.”

Lyle: “Yeah, what?”

Gareth: “Do you happen to have a bottle cap for the perfume with you now?”

Lyle then turned out his pockets, revealing that he had nothing inside. He was, quite literally, empty-handed.

Lyle: “Sorry to disappoint, Dalton. No cap.”

Samuel: “Besides, even if Hayate attacked Lyle, he wouldn’t have been able to know, would you, Lyle?”

Lyle: “!”

Justine: “Huh? The fuck do you mean, Sherlock.”

Samuel: “Lyle. You didn’t commit this murder, right?”

Lyle: “‘Course not. Swear on my life.”

Samuel: “So then why are you still hiding something? Hiding something about yourself, from the rest of us.”

I turned over to Samuel, and whispered in his ear: “Uhh, Sam, what do you mean? Is… is Lyle really hiding something from us? But why?”

Samuel: “Yes, he is. I’m not sure why, but I have a fairly good idea of what his secret is.”  
  
Gareth: “Well, could you… fill me in as to what it is?”

Samuel: “Sorry, Gareth… but you’ll have to take a ‘shot in the dark’, if you catch my drift.”

‘Shot in the dark’? What could that mean? I need to think… What exactly is Lyle’s secret?

**\-----[HANGMAN’S GAMBIT](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTrVBMsVPb0) \-----**

**WHAT IS LYLE’S SECRET?**

A Y B

L X A

N I Y

D X W A

**BLIND**

Gareth: “ **_Now I understand!_ **”

...........................................

Gareth: “Lyle… are… are you blind?”

Lyle: “Tch, shit. Nothin’ gets past you two, does it, Sherlock?”

Samuel: “Lyle… Why were you keeping this a secret from us?”

Lyle: “You really wanna know? ‘Cus I knew that if you all knew I was blind, you might take advantage of me, or worse, kill me. But, there’s no sense in keeping it a secret now.”

Lyle: “ **_Everyone; I, Lyle Morden, the Ultimate Gunman, am, in fact, blind._ **”

Kristina: “Wait… if you’re blind… how do you know who we are?”

Lyle: “Lemme tell ya something real quick; I’ve been blind since I was a kid. And I’m the Ultimate Gunman. _I’ve memorized your voices, your speech patterns, even the sound of your footsteps_.”

Justine: “Even our footsteps?”

Desiré: “How do you know what’s going on around you?”

Lyle: “Simple. Echo-location. I use sound to find my way around.”

Justine: “Isn’t that what bats do?”

Lyle: “...yes. Now, if I could just ask you, Sherlock… how did you figure it out?”

Samuel: “There were a couple of little things that tipped me off. Like how, when you arrived in the Sensory Deprivation Chamber, you asked who died. And when we were outside the Monocube statue, you said ‘I can’t see anything.’ That, and you could hear something that the rest of us couldn’t hear, which meant that your other senses are sharper than ours.” 

Kasey: “How can we even be sure he’s blind? I mean, you need to see to be able to shoot something, right?”

Luke: “ _Riiiight?_ How do we know he’s not lying about it?”

Dalton: “Yeah. I think you’re lying about being blind so that you can try and get away with this crime. And I won’t let you!”

Jasper: “As much as I’d like to believe you… there’s no definitive proof of what you’re saying.”

Brandon: “Agreed. Please, Lyle, prove to us you’re not lying.”

Monokuma: “ **_I see through your arguments!_ **”

Monokuma: “Well, it seems as though you’re all split on this issue! But, not to worry! These trial grounds are state of the art in Morphenomal technology! Now, I think it’s about time for a Debate!”

Suddenly, our podiums began hovering upwards, into the ceiling, and went into a completely white room. On one side, were all the people that believed Lyle. On the other, everyone who didn’t.

**\-----[SCRUM DEBATE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32GWbQt_Zn4) \-----**

**QUESTION: IS LYLE BLIND?**

**HE’S NOT BLIND! VS. HE’S BLIND!**

Jasper: “Unfortunately, there’s _no reason_ to believe he’s blind.”

**_Sam!_ **

Samuel: “There are _plenty of reasons_ , we just have to remember them.”

Kasey: “How do we know he’s not _lying_ about it?”

**_Lyle!_ **

Lyle: “There’s no reason for me to _lie_ about it at all.”

Brandon: “He could’ve used _sound_ and echo-location to move even in the blackest of darkness.”

**_Desiré!_ **

Desiré: “No, they were in a Sensory Deprivation Chamber, and it was totally _soundproof_.”

Dalton: “He knew exactly _what happened to the Hayate_ as soon as he walked in!”

**_I’ll take this one!_ **

Gareth: “No, once he was in the Chamber, _he asked who’d been killed_!”

Dalton: “Then _how did he know_ that Hayate was dead, huh?!”

**_Asuka!_ **

Asuka: “Ah, once we were in the chamber, _I screamed out Hayate’s name_.”

Justine: “ _Could he have used echo-location_ to take the perfume bottle?”

**_Lyle!_ **

Lyle: “ _Echo-location only detects the bodies themselves, not the objects they’re holding_.”

**CROUCH BIND**

**HE’S NOT BLIND! VS. HE’S BLIND!**

**HE’S BLIND!**

Gareth, Samuel, Desiré, Lyle, Asuka: “ **_This is our answer!_ **”

……………………………………………………………………..

Dalton: “Shit… I guess he is blind after all.”

Samuel: “Yes. And now that we know he is, there’s no possible way for him to be the killer. Especially if the murder took place in the Sensory Deprivation Chamber.”

Justine: “Well, if he’s not the killer, who else is left?”

Samuel: “Well, if what I’m thinking is true, then there’s at least one possibility.”

Gareth: “Are you talking about… the secret passage?”

Justine: “Secret passage?”

Lyle: “There’s a secret passage in the Sensory Deprivation Chamber?”

Samuel: “There is. It’s on the ceiling. There was a blood smear on the hatch, as well.”

Kristina: “But that ceiling... is pretty high. How could the killer… have reached it?”

How could the killer have reached it? Maybe, if I think about how the body was positioned, I’ll be able to think of it. Why would Hayate’s body be bent that way? And why would there be a blood smear on the secret hatch?

**\-----[HANGMAN’S GAMBIT](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTrVBMsVPb0) \-----**

**HOW DID THE KILLER REACH THE SECRET HATCH?**

W A C U O

O L W A P T

E R T P

A W T I

W O N

**COOPERATION**

Gareth: “ **_Now I understand!_ **”

…………………………………………………….

Gareth: “I got it! The killer was cooperating with Hayate to open the hatch!”

Jasper: “THEY WHAT?!”

Gareth: “Yes. Not only that, but after the hatch was opened, the culprit killed Hayate, and then…”  
  
Gareth: “ **_The culprit used Hayate’s body as a springboard, jumped into the hatch’s door, and swung himself into the secret passage!_ **”

Kristina: “What?! That’s insane! Just thinking about it seems impossible!”

Justine: “Take it from me; a jump like that is possible. It takes a whole lot of skill, and even then, you’d still need to practice a hell of a lot. I think it’s fair to say only me and Dalton would ever be able to pull off a jump like that. I’m actually kind of impressed he pulled it off in just one try.”  
  
Jasper: “If he really did jump like that, it would actually explain the blood smear on the hatch door, and why they didn’t wipe it away.”

Samuel: “Precisely. This murder, as well as this escape, was dependent on that secret hatch. I’m sure of it.”

Dalton: “H-hey, wait a second! How can we be sure Lyle didn’t know about the hatch?!”

Gareth: “Don’t you remember? You said it yourself when you were done investigating the room. Lyle held the door open, he didn’t go inside!”

Asuka: “Wait, didn’t Hayate go with you, Dalton?”

Brandon: “ **_I detect weakness!_ **”

**\-----[REBUTTAL SHOWDOWN](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mymjF4AZJrg) \-----**

**TRUTH BLADE: MONOKUMA’S ACCOUNT**

Brandon: “Just a moment, there, Gareth.”  
  
Gareth: “Huh? What is it?”

Brandon: “While I do still believe it’s true that Hayate and the killer went to the chamber together, something is missing…”  
  
Gareth: “And what would that be?”

Brandon: “The matter of the Chamber door.”  
  
Brandon: “Does it not require 3 people to open?”   
  
Brandon: “ _How could they possibly have opened it?_ ”   
  
Gareth: “ **_I’ll cut through those words!_ **”

………………………………………………………

Gareth: “This afternoon, Monokuma opened the door for someone. And, since we know you can prop the door open with anything, he used a metal straw to prop it open.”

Brandon: “Ah, I see. Well done, Gareth.”

Justine: “So he got Monokuma to open the door, put a metal straw in to prop it open, and invited Hayate to the room.”  
  
Samuel: “Yes. Then, he killed Hayate, and he used the second straw to mimic a bullet wound, to make us think Lyle was the culprit.”

Dalton: “D-don’t be ridiculous! Hayate was my friend! He trusted me! Why would I kill him?!”

Chloé: “You are ze Ultimate Escape Art-eest. It ees entirely possible zat you killed him to try and esca-”  
  
Dalton: “ **_SHUT UP, GOD DAMN IT!_ **”

**\-----[REBUTTAL SHOWDOWN](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mymjF4AZJrg)** **\-----**

**TRUTH BLADE: BODY’S POSE**

Dalton: “NO! SHUT UP! SHUT THE FUCK UP!”

Gareth: “Dalton, calm down, we’re just saying there’s a strong possibili-”

Dalton: “You motherfucker! Don’t you know who I am?! I’m the Ultimate Escape Artist, god damn it!”  
  
Dalton: “I can escape anything! Even you and your fucking arguments!”

Dalton: “You say I got Hayate’s help to reach the hatch? As if!”

Dalton: “ _There isn’t any fuckin’ proof I did that!_ ”

Gareth: “ **_I’ll cut through those words!_ **”

…………………………………………………………..

Gareth: “The body’s pose.”

Dalton: “Huh?!”

Gareth: “I thought it was weird that it was bent backwards, excluding the knees, which were bent forward. But I realized… if Hayate was killed by the person on his shoulders, then it would actually make some sense.”

Brandon: “Killed by the one on top of his shoulders? Do you mean…?”

Gareth: “Yes, I do. The killer used the metal perfume bottle to smash the back of Hayate’s head while he was still carrying him!”

Dalton: “H-hold the fuck on! How would I have gotten out of the room, huh?!”

Samuel: “Simple. The secret passage leads directly to the library.”

Dalton: “B-but didn’t I already say I was there from 9:25 to 9:55?! Lyle can verify that, even with his blindness!”

Justine: “We only have verification for when he saw you at 9:35. Not for any time before that.”

Dalton: “H-hold on a second! How could I have reached the secret hatch after killing Hayate?!”

Samuel: “As we explained earlier, you used the body as a springboard, and used all your momentum, as well as your grip on the hatch door, to swing up into the secret passage. And only 2 people in this room are capable of performing that feat.”

Gareth: “Yeah. You… and Justine. And since Justine has an alibi for the time of the crime, there’s only one possibility.”

Dalton: “O-oh yeah?! Well, there’s one last thing you forgot about! How would I have known about the secret passage, huh?! You don’t have any fuckin’ proof for that, do ya?!”

Gareth: “Actually… there is.”

Dalton: “Huh?! T-there is?!”

As much as I didn’t want to, I had to end this. I had only just remembered the Skull Necklace in my pocket. I had to end this case… and bring Dalton to his senses.

**SKULL NECKLACE ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

A necklace belonging to Dalton. He dropped it this afternoon in the Sensory Deprivation Chamber, after he landed from some sort of fall.

**\-----[REBUTTAL SHOWDOWN](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mymjF4AZJrg) \-----**

**TRUTH BLADE: SKULL NECKLACE**

Dalton: “What the fuck are you talking about?! There’s no proof of that!”

Dalton: “For the last fucking time…”

Dalton: “I didn’t do anything!”

Dalton: “I couldn’t have escaped the Chamber, anyways…”

Dalton: “‘ _Cus I didn’t know about the secret hatch!_ ”

Gareth: “ **_I’m sorry, Dalton…_ **”

……………………………………………………………….

Gareth: “Dalton… this afternoon, I saw you land in the Sensory Deprivation Chamber.”  
  
Dalton: “H-huh?!”

Gareth: “When you landed, you dropped this.”  
  
I took the necklace, and showed it to everyone. Dalton turned a ghostly shade of white, as he realized that we had figured out exactly what he had done.

Dalton: “M-my necklace! I was looking everywhere for it!”

Gareth: “Dalton, please… you can’t run anymore. It’s over…”

Dalton looked as if he was on the verge of tears. He leaned forward with his hands on his podium, and sweat began pouring down his face. He began panting, as if he had just got done running a marathon.

Samuel: “Gareth… Surely, you’ve figured it all out, haven’t you?”

Gareth: “Yeah… I have…”

Samuel: “Then let’s go over everything that happened. In order to end this trial, we have to look at this case from the very beginning.”

Gareth: “A-alright. Let’s do it.”

**\-----[CLOSING ARGUMENT](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdmsBnQycxg) \-----**

**_“THIS IS WHAT REALLY HAPPENED IN THIS CASE!”_ **

**ACT 1:**

It started this morning. The culprit had taken 2 metal straws from the kitchen, and had asked Hayate to get a metal perfume bottle from Chloé. Then, at some point in the afternoon, they asked Monokuma to open the door. Once the Chamber door was open, he jammed a metal straw in it, to keep it open. He then attempted to see how high he had to jump in order to reach the hatch. This, however, is around the time I saw them. As they left the Chamber, they dropped something on accident, which I retrieved.

**ACT 2:**

Then, that night, the culprit invited Hayate to the Chamber, most likely offering to help him escape. He had asked for the bottle Hayate had gotten, and taken it for themselves. Then, when they both entered the Chamber, the culprit climbed up on Hayate’s shoulders, opened the secret hatch with one hand, and with the other hand, delivered the killing blow to the back of Hayate’s head.

**ACT 3:**

Leaving the body in its bizarre position, the culprit used a second metal straw, and stabbed it directly into Hayate’s collarbone. They did this in an attempt to make us believe that a bullet had been the cause of death. Finally, it was time for the final step of the culprit’s plan…

**ACT 4:**

Using Hayate’s body as a sort of springboard, they jumped into the hatch door, and using their momentum, swung the hatch shut, and continued down the secret passage, to the Library, where he waited for someone to come by to solidify their alibi. However, the killer made a fatal mistake; they left a bloodstain on the hatch door. 

In short, the killer utilized Hayate’s trust in them, as well as their incredible talents to commit this crime.

**_The only one capable of committing this crime, is you, Dalton North, the Ultimate Escape Artist!_ **

…………………………………………………………………..

Kristina: “So… it really is true… you killed Hayate…”

Dalton: “I-I, I-”

Monokuma: “Welp, sounds like you guys are just about done here!”

Luke: “Mmhm, we’re all set here. Now it’s time to vote or something, right?”

Monokuma: “Yessiree! So let’s do it! Will you make the right choice, or the dreadfully wrong one? Through tears and through fears, iiiiit's voting time!”

**\----- CLASS TRIAL COMPLETE -----**

From behind Monokuma’s massive chair, a monolithic slot machine began to spin, with all of our faces on the wheels. Eventually, all 3 wheels came to a stop, each with a picture of Dalton. As the machine stopped, the screen on it began lighting up, and a sort of victory jingle played, as flowers burst out of the sides.  
  
“Congratulations! You all voted correctly! Hayate’s killer is, in fact, an Ultimate Escape Artist, Dalton North!” 

I went to look at Dalton; he looked like a completely different person. He was covered in sweat, white as a sheet, and his eyes had sunken so far that they almost couldn’t be called eyes anymore. “Why?! Why did you do it?!” I found myself yelling. “You said you were gonna get us out of here! So why?! Why did you…?!” “I… I couldn’t find any other way out. It was impossible. I tried everything I could to find another way out. But I… I just couldn’t. There’s no hope of escape… for me… for anyone... for Hayate…” “Why did you choose Hayate? You said yourself that he was your friend!” Brandon yelled. “I… I didn’t want to. Believe me, I didn’t. But... Hayate knew. Knew there was no escape.” “What are you getting at?” Jarrett said. “Hayate… asked me to kill him. He knew the only way out… was to win the game… and kill all of you.” Dalton gazed up at us, with eyes that can only be described as sadness given sight. “I didn’t want to… I wanted to leave with everyone! I wanted us all to live! I want Hayate to be alive! I didn’t want any of this to happen!!” He began sobbing uncontrollably, and suddenly his torso shot backward, and he shouted, “ **_I WANT HAYATE BAAAAAAACK!!!_ **”

Dalton turned to me, tears rushing down his face; “Please… promise me, promise me you’ll all find a way to escape from here!” I clutched the necklace in my hands, and tried passing it to Dalton. He simply sobbed. “Alrighty then, now that that’s all done, it’s time for this trial’s exciting finale! With trembling hearts, iiiiiit’s **_Punishment Time!!_ **”

“ **_DALTON! I PROMISE YOU! I’LL GET US ALL OUT OF HERE!_ **” I shouted. He turned to me, wiped the tears from his eyes, and gave me a shaky smile; “Thank you, Gareth… I know I can count on you.” He said. As he stood back up, he simply closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and faced forward. “Don’t worry, Hayate. I’ll be with you soon as I’m done here. Monokuma!” He turned to the bear, “are we doin’ this or what?”

“You got it! Bwahahahahaha!” Suddenly, a collar on a chain shot out of nowhere, and snapped itself onto his neck, and forcefully dragged him away. Suddenly, a massive TV screen appeared, showing us Dalton in what appeared to be an escape room. The camera then shifted to the outside of the room, where it appeared to be a sort of cube attached to a large crane. 

Then, a sort of title card appeared; “ **_INESCAPABLE DEATH CUBE_ **”. The crane then began to move in various directions. Dalton was getting thrashed around, from one side to the other. The crane kept moving, faster and faster, and Dalton kept getting thrashed around, bloodier and bloodier. The crane’s movements became so violent that it began repeatedly began smashing itself onto the ground. When it finally stopped, the camera swapped to Dalton, who, despite being severely injured, was somehow still able to stand. That was, until the fire started. It consumed the whole room. And though we couldn’t hear him, we could all tell.

Dalton was screaming.

As for us? Horror. We all stared on in absolute horror at what we were watching. Our friend, Dalton, was burning alive, screaming, and we could do nothing except watch it happen. 

Luke was the one to break us out of funk; “You guys done yet? I’m tired, and I’d like to leave.” “You vile little fiend!” Brandon scorned, “Dalton was our comrade! And he was just horribly executed! How dare you speak so nonchalantly!” “Well, he said he wanted us to escape, didn’t he? We can’t really do that without moving past his death.” “You little…!” Jasper snapped, beginning to move towards him. “No… as much as I hate to say it, he’s right.” Samuel said. “We need to leave. We can’t do anything if we linger on this.” “But… what about Dalton? Do we just… forget about him?” Kristina asked. “No, of course not. But, in order to escape this killing game, we have no choice. We have to keep moving forward. No matter what.”

I stared down at the necklace in my hand. ‘This necklace belonged to Dalton,’ I thought, ‘and now it symbolises the promise I made.’ I put it around my neck, and began heading back outside. Eventually, I returned to my room, and, although it was rather restless, I eventually fell asleep.

**CHAPTER 1: THE SILENT SCENT OF DEATH**

**END**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	4. Voices From the Wild Blue Yonder, Part 1 (Daily Life)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gareth and the others investigate the new areas that were unlocked, and Monokuma gives another motive

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to the Game Grumps, whose LP of Danganronpa reminded me I had to get to work on this lol

**SURVIVING STUDENTS: 14**

**GARETH TAYLOR: ULTIMATE ASSISTANT**

**SAMUEL HERLOCK: ULTIMATE DETECTIVE**

**JARRETT LAURN: ULTIMATE VOICE ACTOR**

**ASUKA HIRUKA: ULTIMATE DANCER**

**BRANDON GASH: ULTIMATE BIRD-WATCHER**

**KRISTINA HALL: ULTIMATE BLOGGER**

**KASEY GARA: ULTIMATE STREAMER**

**LYLE MORDEN: ULTIMATE GUNMAN**

**LUKE ZAVARD: ULTIMATE TRICKSTER**

**JUSTINE CASSLER: ULTIMATE PARKOUR RUNNER**

**CHLOÉ CHANEL: ULTIMATE PERFUMER**

**JASPER GORDIN: ULTIMATE BODYBUILDER**

**DIXIE GRAYSON: ULTIMATE CARPENTER**

**DESIRÉ GALICA: ULTIMATE DRIVER**

……………………………………………………………………..

**_CHAPTER 2: VOICES FROM THE WILD BLUE YONDER_ **

**_DAILY LIFE_ **

  
  


I awoke to the sound of the morning announcement. I got out of bed and went to get dressed, and put Dalton’s necklace around my neck. I then walked out, and I saw Dixie walking out of her room as well. “Mornin’.” She said. “Oh! Good morning. Uh, hey, Dixie, can I ask you a question?” “Go ahead, shoot.” “Well, yesterday, during the class trial, I couldn’t help but notice. You didn’t talk, did you?” I asked. “Yep. Not a peep.” She responded. “Can you tell me why?” I asked again. “‘Cus I ain’t good at mystery solving.” Dixie said “Plus, you guys had that handled. You didn’t need my help.” She responded. “I… guess that’s true. Well, I guess it’s good we won’t have to do a class trial again, so we should be ok.” I said. With that, we began small talking on our way to the dining hall. Dixie and I grew a little closer today.

We arrived in the dining hall, where everyone else, save Luke, was. “What’re y’all talkin’ about?” Dixie asked. “Ah, good, you’ve arrived. I think you should know that the Talent Development Station has opened, as well as the medbay.” Sam stated. “Does this mean we have to do another investigation?” Kasey asked. “Yes. However, I don’t think this one will take as long as our previous one. Even so, we should still be thorough.” Sam said. “Gareth, if you don’t mind, I’d like you to come with me again.” Sam asked. “Oh, um, sure. Though, I’m not sure why you’d ask, especially since I didn’t find anything last time…” I stammered. “True, but you were able to help me solve yesterday’s mystery. I mean, even I never would’ve thought the killer would’ve used the body as a springboard!” Sam said. “Don’t underestimate yourself, Gareth. You’re a lot stronger than you may think.” 

“Geez, you guys haven’t even started investigating yet?” Luke’s whiny voice signaled his arrival. “I’ll bet you guys haven’t even noticed what’s going on in the gym.” “What do you mean? What’s going on in the gym?” Jarrett asked. “So I was right! Well… I think I’ll let you find out for yourselves. Talk to ya later, heheheh.” Luke said, turning around and leaving. “That’s it? That’s all that twerp came in here to say?” Lyle said. “It appears so” Chloé said. “Well, I suppose me, Gareth and Justine can go investigate that.” Sam said. I looked at him and gave a small thumbs up, and Justine simply crossed her arms and leaned against the wall. “Hey, mind if I come with you two?” Jasper asked. “I suppose so. It does make sense for the Ultimate Bodybuilder to be interested in a gym.” Sam said. “Everyone else should go investigate the Talent Development Station. Alright, everyone, let’s get going.” And with those words, we all split up. Me, Sam, Jasper, and Justine headed off to the gym, Brandon, Dixie, Lyle, Kristina and Desiré left for the Talent Development Station, and Jarrett, Asuka, Kasey, and Chloé went to the Medbay.

As we arrived in the gym, we immediately noticed that there was a door that we couldn’t access before. “Guess this is what Luke meant.” Jasper said. “Yeah. I just wish he wasn’t such a douche about it.” Justine responded. “As much as I disagree with your wording… I can’t help but agree. Luke is a bit of… well, a pest.” Sam said. I decided to try and get things back on topic; “Uh, weren’t we supposed to investigate?” “Ah, you’re right. Let’s get to it.” Sam agreed. He pushed the door open, and inside, a small room with 2 doors, one colored pink with a stick figure in a dress, and one colored blue with a normal stick figure. “These must be… locker rooms.” Sam said. “In that case; Jasper, Justine, you two should investigate the girls locker room. Gareth, you and I shall investigate the boys locker room. After that, we should investigate this room.” He followed up.

Me and Sam went over to the locker room door, but before we could open it, that dastardly black-and-white bear, Monokuma, appeared as if from nowhere. “Whoa there! Hold up! Just a minute!” He shouted. “What do you want, dickhead?” Justine growled. “Wha-?! Why are you being so rude! I only came here to tell you to use your Monopads before you open the door.” Monokuma retorted. “Huh? Why?” Jasper asked. “Well, as the headmaster of this school, I can’t very well have any boys sneaking into the girls locker room, or vice versa, now, can I?! Hmph!” “But what does that have to do with our Monopads?” I asked. “Oh, yeah, that. Well, your Monopads are custom made for you. It also acts as a sort of key card for some parts of the school. So, say, if you’re a girl, and you try to get into the boys locker room, an alarm will sound in this room, and if you don’t leave in at least 60 seconds, you’ll get gunned down!” “G-GUNNED DOWN?!” Jasper yelled in confusion. “Out of everything you could’ve done to detract perverts, you installed fucking guns? Are you fucking insane?!” Justine snapped at Monokuma. “Well, maybe if the boys would start thinkin’ with their heads instead of their other heads, I wouldn’t have to do that! Ahahahaha!” Monokuma laughed. “Uhh… we’re still here.” I questioned. “Oh. Right. Yeah, just use your Monopads or whatever,” A smirk spread across the black side of his face, “and don’t do any peeping! Puhuhuhuhuhu!” And with that, Monokuma made his exit. “Well… I suppose we should do what he says.” Sam said. He swiped his Monopad into the card-reader, and it turned green, and we heard something unlock. “I guess that means it worked.” I said. With that, we walked into the boys locker room.

When we walked in, we saw… a normal locker room. Bricks painted blue, blue colored lockers, white floor, clock on the wall, and the standard monitors found all around the Outpost. “Uhh… Doesn’t look like there’s much here.” I said. Sam, however, had his hand on his chin, and he appeared to be looking at nothing in particular. I quickly attempted to regain his attention; “O-Oh! But, uh, there might be more than meets the eye?” I sputtered. “Hmmm… Actually, you might’ve been right the first time. I don’t think we’ll find anything here.” Sam responded. “Oh… Sorry.” “Hm? Oh, no worries. Did… did you think I’d be upset if you didn’t find anything?” “Uhh… Kinda?” “Gareth, you don’t have to worry about that. I might be a detective, but that doesn’t make me better than other people, you know? You don’t have to try and impress me. Just being you is enough help, Gareth.” Sam’s words made me realize something; I was always trying to be helpful to people, and in doing so, I hadn’t even considered the idea. The idea that I didn’t need to change who I was to help people. I just needed to be… Me. “Hey, you OK? You look kinda spaced out.” Sam asked. I paused, and said; “Thanks, Sam. That… means a lot.” As I said that, a small smile came onto Sam’s face. “No problem. Now, let’s go back to look at the room outside.” “Right!” I said. Sam and I grew a little closer today.

“So what’d you two dorks find?” Justine berated. Sam sighed and said, “Nothing.” “Then I guess all we have left to do is investigate this room.” Jasper said. We all began looking around the room, searching for something suspicious. I found something that appeared to hold Monopads, but for some reason it appeared to be full. “Hey, guys, come check this out.” I said. “What the hell are these? They look exactly like our Monopads.” Justine said. Once again, as she said that Monokuma appeared in the room. “Those are Omnipads. They can be used to unlock any area that requires a pad-reader, regardless of gender or whatever. But you can only use it once. After that, it’s basically just a lump of computer stuff.” He said. “GAH!” I shouted in surprise. “Whoa, you actually let me finish the explanation! Puhuhu! Well, that’s all I came here to say. See ya later, if you’re not in the belly of an alligator! Pahahahahaha!” And just like that, he was gone. “‘Belly of an alligator?’ The fuck does that even mean?” Justine questioned. “I… think it’s supposed to be some sort of dark twist on the phrase ‘see ya later, alligator’. It was just… supremely lame.” Sam answered. “In any case, I think we’re done here. Let’s head back to the Dining Hall.” 

We arrived to find everyone already gathered inside. “So what’d ya find?” Jarrett asked. “Locker rooms that’ll fucking shoot you if you try and go in the opposite one.” Justine responded. “WHAT?! GUN US DOWN?!” Jarrett screamed. Sam calmed him down, and then explained how the locker rooms and Omnipads worked. “Anyways, what’d you all find?” He asked. “Yes, well, it appears as though, despite its opening, only a select few talent development rooms are available.” Brandon answered. “Which ones were open?” I asked. “The Bird-Watcher, the Carpenter, the Parkour Runner, the Perfumer, and the Gunman. Did I miss any?” Brandon responded. “What about the medbay? What’d you find there?” Sam asked. “Not much. It’s basically just a small hospital. ‘S got a ton of medical equipment and stuff. Not much else to it, really.” Jarrett explained.

“Well, if that’s all, then… I guess that’s it.” Sam said, ending the meeting. With that, we all left. On my way out, I saw Lyle, and decided to try talking to him; “Hey, Lyle.” I called. “Oh. What’s up, Gareth?” He said. “Uhh, hey, I have a question.” “Oh yeah? Go ahead.” He said. “So, you’re the Ultimate Gunman, right?” “That I am.” “Does that… does that mean you’ve killed people before?” As I said that, Lyle turned away, looked up, and sighed. “Yeah, I have. It’s what gunmen do. I don’t enjoy it, it’s just what I do.” He then turned back to me, and said; “By the way, I don’t intend on killing anyone while I’m here. I don’t kill anyone without a reason.” He said. “So wait, what about Monokuma’s motives?” “Ha! That bear’s got nothing that interests me, let alone one that’ll make me wanna kill someone. Besides, I make it a rule not to kill friends. Obviously, you and everyone else are exactly that. Well, ‘cept for Luke. He’s an exception.” Me and Lyle talked for a little while. Lyle and I grew a little bit closer today. I returned to my room, and, after the nighttime announcement, I drifted off into sleep.

…………………………………………………………………………

I woke up the next morning feeling energized. I stretched my body, and began making my way towards the Dining Hall. On my way, I saw Asuka, and decided to strike up a conversation. “So, what was it that inspired you to be a dancer?” I asked. “Hmmmm… I can’t really say for certain. It’s just that ever since I was a child, I simply enjoyed moving around. I never even really considered what I was doing dancing, until a dance agency contacted me. Ever since then, I’ve just been the Ultimate Dancer.” She responded. “So wait, you didn’t even think about having an Ultimate talent?” I said. “I guess you could say that.” She said. “Huh, then I guess we have something in common. I didn’t really think about mine either. I just wanted to help people, and I sorta just… stumbled into the role, I guess.” I said. “Well, I, for one, like your talent. If I weren’t the Ultimate Dancer, that’d be the talent I would like to have instead.” She said. Asuka and I grew a little closer today.

I arrived in the dining hall to find everyone eating some pancakes that were apparently prepared by Brandon and Desiré. After having some, we all made some small talk. As we were all about to leave, however, Monokuma seemed to manifest out of seemingly nowhere to give us something we were lacking. “Well, hey howdy hey, everyone! Glad to see you all in good spirits!” he said. “Damn detestable bear!,” Brandon said, unsheathing his rapier, “What is it you want from us, eh? Money? Glory? What?” “What I want is super simple; I want you guys to kill each other. And in order to give you soft-hearted sissies some incentive to end your ‘friend’s’ lives, I’m here to give you another motive!” He said. “Another motive? Whaddya you have that could get us to try and kill again?” Dixie asked. “Good question! The motive this time is…”

**_“I’ll let whoever kills someone talk to their family again!”_ **

“Hahahahaha! Foolish bear!” Brandon scoffed, “I am not fond of my family in the slightest. What makes you think you’ll get me to kill someone with a ridiculous motive like that? HA!” “Oh? Really? How sad.” he said. “Yeah, sad that you think you can make us kill someone with a lame ass motive like that!” Justine snapped. “No, sad at how naive you are!” Monokuma yelled, “You guys might not like you families, but in the end, that’s just you! Who’s to say someone here doesn’t love their family, huh?!” As Monokuma said that, we all looked around at each other, silently, distrustful. “Puhuhuhu! I see that you all get what I’m saying now. Welp, I’m done here. I look forward to see who’ll brand themselves as a cold-blooded killer next! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” With one last ear-piercing laugh, Monokuma made his leave.

We were all quiet. In that silence, I glanced down at Dalton’s necklace, and I remembered the promise I made. Gripping the necklace in my hand, I glanced back up, and said; “Come on! We’ve gotta get ourselves together! If we’re all distrustful and suspicious of each other, then Monokuma’s already won! You don’t want that stupid bear to win, do you?!” “Y-Yeah! Gareth’s right!” Jarrett said. “I’m not gonna let that bear manipulate me! Not a chance!” “Agreed. I refuse to allow another killing to occur. So long as we are here, I cannot allow it to happen!” Brandon said. As everyone was encouraging each other, Sam came over to me. “Nice job getting them over their distrust. I don’t think I could’ve done it better myself.” He said. “Yeah, no problem. It’s just that…” I glanced down at the necklace again, “I made a promise, and I intend to do everything I can to keep it.” I said. “Keeping promises, huh… That’s a good way to live.” Sam said. “I’ll do what I can to help you to keep that promise. After all, I don’t want anyone else to die either.” Sam said. Sam and I grew a little closer today.

With that, we left the room. As we were leaving, Jarrett came up to me. “Yo, Gareth, I just wanted to thank you for earlier.” He said. “Hm? Oh, that? Yeah, man, no problem.” I responded. “Hey man, can I tell you somethin’?” He asked. “Oh, sure, go right ahead.” I said. “You might not know this, but I’m really easily scared.” He said. Uhh, actually, I did guess that. Not that I’m gonna tell him that, though. “That’s the reason I do voices. To try and hide the fact that I’m, like, ultra terrified.” “Wait, aren’t you a professional voice actor though? Are you also scared of working with people you don’t really know?” I asked. “Well, I mean, yeah. It was super scary, at first. But then I got to know the guys I worked with a little better, and it became, like, way less scary, y’know?” He answered. “Alright, I gotta go, but thanks for lettin’ me say my piece, man. Oh, and Gareth?” “Hm?” I said. “You’re a good guy. I hope you get outta here. The world needs a guy like you.” He said. “Thanks, Jarrett. That really means a lot.” With that, me and Jarrett left for our rooms. Jarrett and I grew a little closer today.

After sitting in my room for a little while, a thought crossed my mind; I don’t know if I actually have a room in the Talent Development Station. So, I decided to get some food, and then go try and see if I had a room. I made my way outside, and I noticed Brandon and Lyle talking to each other. Before I tried talking to them, I decided to listen in on their conversation; “Oh yeah? You think your little stick can beat my perfect bullets?” Lyle said in a cocky tone. “Hmph. With my Soldiers of the Skies on my side, and my soul of steel, I can easily stand against your little super soaker!” Brandon retorted. “Oh yeah, I’ll soak ya all right; in lead.” Lyle quipped back. “I’d actually like to see you try that, you damned blind blaster” Brandon said. After he said that, both of them smiled, and they both began laughing. When one of them laughed louder, the other would raise their voice. I decided to just leave them alone and keep going. After walking around the (admittedly confusing) Talent Development Station. Just as Brandon had said, although they were rooms for each of us, only some were unlocked. Sadly, mine just so happened to be locked. I decided to just go back to my room to rest. When I got back, the nighttime announcement played, and I decided to just go to bed.

The morning announcement came, and I awoke and headed out of bed to the Dining Hall. For a while, we all ate in silence, with the notable absence of some people. “Uhh, hey, aren’t we missing some people?” I said. “Yeah… We’re missing both Asuka and Chloé…” Kristina said. “We should probably go look for them. Let’s check the dorms, then we’ll check around elsewhere.” Sam instructed. We all headed over to the dorms, and we didn’t find anything. “Damn, they’re not here… Maybe they’re at the Talent Development Station?” Dixie said. “That’s a good idea. Let us make haste!” Brandon said. With that, we all ran to the Talent Development Station, and split up to cover as many labs as possible. I went with Sam, Brandon, and Kristina and Dixie to check the Carpenter’s lab. What we saw was something we never thought we’d see again. A horrific sight that can only be seen in a killing game.

Lying on a table in the Carpenter’s lab, was Asuka’s corpse, laying face down, covering the table in a splatter of blood. As we were trying to make any sense of what we were seeing, a mocking voice and video of a black-and-white bear began playing across the whole facility;   
  
**_“A body has been discovered! Everyone, hurry up and gather in the Ultimate Carpenter’s Lab! After a short period of time that you may use however you wish, a class trial will begin!”_ **


	5. Voices From the Wild Blue Yonder, Part 2 (Deadly Life)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The investigation of Asuka's death begins, and a class trial begins to determine the killer. Who will the killer be this time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if these are taking a while come out now. Aside from the usual irl stuff (mostly work), I've been pretty tired. I'll be taking a bit of a break from this so as to not burn myself out. I do intend to continue the story, it just might be at some point in December/January. See ya then.

**_Chapter 2: Voices From the Wild Blue Yonder_ **

**_DEADLY LIFE_ **

Bloody. Lifeless. Horrifying. That’s all I could think. All I could feel. All I could see. A horrifying, bloody, lifeless corpse of a friend. The corpse of someone I knew. The corpse of Asuka Hiruka, the Ultimate Dancer. Dead. All dead. All gone.

Everyone, save for one person, suddenly rushed to the scene. The first voice we heard was Luke’s; “Whoa, looks like the dancer bit the dust this time. Gotta say, wasn’t really expecting that.” He said. “Y-You can’t be serious..” Jarrett sputtered. “This… can’t be…!” Kristina said, noticeably beginning to tear up. “Damn it! How could we’ve let this happen again?!” Lyle lamented. “I… I’m not sure. But this must mean that, once again… one of us is-” Sam began.

“A killer!” A shrill voice interuppted. Monokuma appeared before us once again. “And, as per usual, you’re gonna hafta investigate and find out whodunnit!” He squealed. “You’re a real bastard, y’know that, you goddamn bear?!” Lyle snapped. “Oh, don’t be like that! I’m here to help you, after all. Puhuhuhuhu! Now, get on with it.” Monokuma retorted. “I hate to admit it, but… we don’t have much of a choice but to investigate.” Sam stated, rather sullenly. “We should try and do this as quickly and efficiently as possible. If not, then, well... we’re all dead.” “I guess we really don’t have a choice, huh… alright, let’s just get this over with.” Jasper said, solemnly.

**\-----[INVESTIGATION START](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCfpmW6s37U)\-----**

“Alrighty, then, time to get you started! Iiiiit’s, the Monokuma File!” Monokuma said. He then handed all of us a small tablet containing the information about the murder. “Let’s see here…” Sam said, turning on the File’s screen and reading the information aloud; “Victim is Asuka Hiruka. Killed at approximately 9:20 PM.” He read. “No cause of death again.” I said. “Well, I guess we’ll just have to find that out.”  
  
 **MONOKUMA FILE 2 ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Gareth?” Sam began, “Can I count on you to help me once again?” He asked. “Hm? Oh, of course. I just hope I can actually, y’know… help this time.” I said. Sam looked at me and gave a small smile; “I expect great things, Ultimate Assistant” He said, in a joking manner. I smiled and gave him a thumbs up, and we began investigating.

“The first thing we should investigate is the cause of death.” Sam said. We walked over to the table the body rested on. Immediately, I noticed a snapped rope around her ankle. “What’s that doing there?” I said. “Hmmm… good question. If the killer wanted to make it look like a hanging, they certainly didn’t do a very good job. Unless…” Sam then turned the body over to look at Asuka’s neck. “Just as I thought. There’s rope marks on her neck, but it appears as though it’s not actually the cause of death.” “Huh? How do you figure that?” I asked. “Simple; the rope marks indicate that, although there was a rope around Asuka’s neck, it wasn’t actually enough to strangle her.” He explained. “Then… does that mean the killer only wanted us to think strangulation killed her?” I asked. “Most likely,” He said, “Which means that the stab wounds in her chest is the true cause of death.” “Guess that means I should write that down, right?” I said. Sam simply nodded.

**ROPE ON ANKLES ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

**ROPE MARK ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Uhh, quick question,” I began to ask, “How many stab wounds are there?” Sam turned the body over, and began feeling the body. “It’s… exactly 5.” He said. I gave a thumbs up, and wrote it down.

**STAB WOUNDS ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Hmm? What’s this?” Sam said, pulling out a small, blood-soaked letter. “I can barely make out some of the words…” I said. My eyes were also drawn to a certain word on that letter; “Mastermind?” “Well, I think that whoever wrote this had the intention of making Asuka think they were the mastermind.” Sam said. “Looking at how things went down… I’d say she fell for it. Poor Asuka…” I said. “We’d better write this down.”

**BLOODY LETTER ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

After taking note of those things, I noticed something on the ground. I went to go and see what it was; “Hey, Sam, this thing looks some sort of towel. It’s… kinda damp too.” I said. After setting the body back down, Sam came over and took the towel from me. After turning it around in his hands, he then sniffed it. His eyelids started flitting open and shut, “Gareth, could you give me a firm slap for one second.” I, reluctantly, did what he said. _SLAP_. He placed his hand where I had slapped him; “Thanks for that. But, just as I thought, that towel had some sort of chemical on it that makes it, at the very least, difficult to maintain consciousness.” Sam said. “So you needed me to slap you to, like, wake you up?” “Yes. I’d like to say this was simply used to knock Asuka out, and kill her, but I don’t want to jump to any conclusions. In any case, we should write it down.”

**TOWEL WITH CHEMICALS ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Now, we have to find where she was tied to.” Sam said. “Wait, how do you know she was tied to something?” I asked. “Well, the rope looks like it’s been broken in some way, and, seeing as how it’s around her ankle, I think it’s safe to assume that it was used to keep the body within a certain area, similar to a prisoner’s shackles.” Sam explained. “Oh, I… guess that does make sense.” I said. After looking around the area, Sam eventually found the other end of the rope; “It’s tied around this pillar, but… it looks like it’s been cut with something.” Sam said. “What do you think could’ve cut it?” I asked. “More importantly, who?” Sam continued. 

**CUT ROPE ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

I then caught something in the corner of my eye. “Hey, Sam, isn’t this one of those Omnipads from the locker room? What’s it doing here?” I said. “That’s… a rather good question. I suppose this means we’ll have to check the locker room, then.” Sam said. He stood up, and we made our way out of the lab.  
  
 **OMNIPAD ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Oh? You two headed for the locker room?” Monokuma said in his standard squeaky voice. “Yeah. What’re you gonna do about it?” Sam retorted. “Oh, I just wanted to tell you; someone used an Omnipad last night, as well as their own Monopad.” He said. “Wait, so we were right?!” I said. “Yep! I’m not saying who though! Puhuhuhu!” He laughed at us. Groaning, we left for the locker room. As we were walking out, I also noticed something out of place; “Hey, Sam, what’s up with that ladder?” I asked. We moved in for a closer inspection. “It appears as though… there are blood droplets on it.” He said. “Why would those be there?” I asked. “Not sure, but take a note of it. We have places to be right now.”

**LADDER ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**   
  
**MONOKUMA’S ACCOUNT ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Oh, by the way, you can access both locker rooms during an investigation. Just don’t do anything naughty, puhuhu.” Monokuma giggled, just before we left the room. We eventually arrived at the area containing the doors to the locker rooms. “Alright, which one should we do first?” I asked. “I’d say we-” *BANG BANG* a loud banging coming from the locker room door. We also heard some sort of muffled voice “HELP! LET ME OUT!” We heard it scream. Sam and I looked at each other, nodded, and together we opened the door. What we saw inside was shocking.

“OH, SACRE BLEU, ZANK YOU FOR RESCUING ME! YOU TWO ARE MY HEROES!” She said, rushing over and forcing us into a hug. “W-what the hell?! Chloé?!” I exclaimed. “What’re you doing in the boys locker room?!” Sam yelled, wrenching us out of Chloé’s vice-like hug. “I-I-I zought zat no one was coming to rescue me! I ‘ave been stuck in here since last night!” Chloé blubbered. “Woah, just calm down for a second! We came here to investigate.” I said. “Ah, yes, ze body! Who is it? Who ‘as died zis time?!” she sputtered. “Asuka. We already investigated that scene, though. But we found something that led us here. Clearly, that was a good idea.” Sam explained. “Now, Chloé, I want you to explain to us exactly what happened to you last night. It just might bring us closer to the truth.” He said. “A-ah! A-are you sure? Zere’s not much to it.” Chloé stammered. “Yes. Seeing as how you were locked in here, I’d say it’s rather important.” Sam said. “A-alright. At 9:25, I was walking from my lab at ze Talent Development Station, when, suddenly, I was attacked from behind. Something was forced onto my mouth, and I almost immediately fell unconscious.” She explained. “Fell unconscious? That might be…” Sam began; “The towel with that chemical on it!” I answered. “Precisely. Chloé, you’ve given us some rather crucial information. Thank you.” Sam said. “A-AH!” Chloé stammered, a large blush on her face, staring at Sam.

**CHLOÉ’S ACCOUNT ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Uh, I hate to disrupt your, um… fantasising, but, um, where are you shoes?” Sam asked. “H-huh?” Chloé squeaked. Looking down to her feet, she was, in fact, only in her socks. “Do you think that whoever attacked her took her shoes?” I asked. “I’m… not sure. I don’t see a reason for it. In any case, I think we should write it down, just in case.”

**CHLOÉ’S MISSING SHOES ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“By the way, what were you doing at the Talent Development Station?” I asked. “Ah, here.” Chloé said, pulling out a small letter. “‘Meet me at your talent lab at 9:25 if you want to ever hope to see your family again. Mastermind.’” I read. “Looks like you weren’t the only one who received a letter from this supposed ‘Mastermind’.” Sam said.

**CHLOÉ’S LETTER ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Alright, let’s take a look around.” Sam said. We all began looking around, Sam looking around the showers, Chloé just… standing around, and me checking the lockers. I eventually opened one, and found…

“A-Aaaahhhh!” I yelled. Sam rushed over; “What is it? What’d you find?!” He said. “It’s… It’s a bloody knife!” I said. 

**BLOODY KNIFE ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“This must be-” “-The murder weapon!” Sam and I said, one after the other. “I think this means we’re close to solving this mystery!” Sam exclaimed. “That’s good, since we’re almost outta time.” A smooth, deep voice said. We looked up to see Lyle, standing there in the doorway. “What’re you doing here, Lyle?” I questioned. “I just wanted to tell you guys something important. But I didn’t want the killer to hear, of course.” He explained. “And what would that be?” Sam asked. “Well, I can’t give specifics, but, last night…”

**_“I heard voices”_ **

“You did?!” I yelled in disbelief. “Yeah. I know the times, too. I heard one at 9:30, and the other at 9:50. During that time, I also heard a loud crashing sound.” Lyle explained. “Why can’t you go into specifics?” Sam probed. “Oh, I plan to. During the class trial, at least.” Lyle answered. “Wait, how’d you know the time?” I asked. “Oh, that? I checked my watch.” Lyle said. He then clicked the watch on his wrist, and it spoke out the time.

**LYLE’S ACCOUNT ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

**LYLE’S WATCH ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Ahh, zat watch is quite fancy. For a gunman, of course.” Chloé commented. Lyle grew strangely quiet at Chloé’s comment, and then said; “Oh. It’s you.” With some sort of… contempt in his voice. As he said that, an announcement played throughout the Outpost; 

**_“Alright, kiddos! Tiiiiime’s up! Head to the Monocube outside so that we can begin the trial! See you soon~”_ **

“Before we leave,” Sam said to me, “we should note how the locker room doors work. It could be important.”

**LOCKER ROOM DOORS ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

With that, we concluded our investigation, and headed to the Monocube outside. “Well, we’re all here, Monokuma! Even the trollop that decided not to show up, ahaha.” Luke mocked. “Hey, come on, that’s rude, dude!” Kasey reprimanded. “Oh yeah? Well, for your information, I’m a real rude dude with a bad attitude, and I’m in a foul mood that can’t be cured with simple food. So now, why don’tcha quit being a prude?!” Luke rhymed. “Uh… I get what you were going for, but was the rhyming really necessary?” Jarrett said, bewildered as the rest of us. Just then, the elevator sprung out in front of us. Silently, solemnly, we all walked inside.

As we all stood there, in our reserved pocket of quiet, I couldn’t help but think; Why? Why did this happen again? How could it have happened again? Who could've possibly wanted to do this? Who could’ve been capable of this? This kind of evil? This kind of cruelty? Could such an evil individual truly exist?

Then it hit me; as of this moment, there was only one person I knew for sure couldn’t have done it; myself. Everyone else, including Sam, was a potential suspect. Nobody was off the proverbial hook yet.

But that’s exactly what we were here to find out. To discover who among us could possibly have committed such a horrible act. To sift through the horrid, wretched darkness, and come out with one singular, shining truth; that is the essence...

**_Of a Class Trial!_ **

…………………………………………………………………..

**TRUTH BULLETS:**

  * **MONOKUMA FILE 2:**



Victim was Asuka Hiruka. Killed at 9:45 PM.

  * **ROPE ON ANKLES:**



There was a rope tied around Asuka’s ankles. Possibly used to keep her restrained.

  * **ROPE MARK:**



There was a rather noticeable mark of rope burn on Asuka’s neck. However, it was not ‘deep’ enough, so it could be determined that strangulation was not the cause of death.

  * **STAB WOUNDS:**



There were exactly 5 stab wounds in Asuka’s chest.

  * **BLOODY LETTER:**



Asuka had a bloody letter on her. Most of the words can’t be made out, but the word “Mastermind” is still visible.

  * **TOWEL WITH CHEMICALS:**



There was a towel that was lightly soaked in some sort of chemical that could knock you unconscious.

  * **CUT ROPE:**



A rope was found tied around a pillar. Most likely the same that was around her ankles.

  * **OMNIPAD:**



An Omnipad was found at the scene of the crime.

  * **MONOKUMA’S ACCOUNT:**



According to Monokuma, an Omnipad was used last night.

  * **LADDER:**



A ladder was found near the entrance of the carpenter’s lab. There are dried bloodstains on the steps.

  * **CHLOÉ’S ACCOUNT:**



Chloe was attacked at 9:25 PM last night, was knocked unconscious, and awoke to find herself locked in the locker room.

  * **CHLOÉ’S LETTER:**



Chloé got a letter telling her to go to her lab at the Talent Development Station. “Mastermind” is the signature again

  * **CHLOÉ’S MISSING SHOES:**



Chloé’s shoes have disappeared. Most likely taken when she was attacked.

  * **BLOODY KNIFE:**



A bloody knife found in a locker. Most likely the true cause of death.

  * **LYLE’S ACCOUNT:**



According to Lyle, he heard voices last night; one at 9:30, and the other at 9:50. Also at 9:50, he heard a crashing sound.

  * **LYLE’S WATCH:**



Lyle’s watch can speak the time out loud whenever the button is pressed. Custom-made, as Lyle cannot tell the time otherwise due to his blindness.

  * **LOCKER ROOM DOORS**



In order to unlock the door (on either side), a Monopad has to be swiped. If it isn’t the correct one, an alarm will ring out for 30 seconds, after which, if the false swiper hasn’t left the area or swiped the correct Monopad, they will be executed. Omnipads bypass these restrictions

…………………………………………………………

Monokuma: “Howdy, everyone, and welcome back to the class trial! Gotta say, I didn’t expect to see you all come back so soon! No worries, though. I’m sure you remember the rules from last time, so let’s ditch the tutorial and get right to the meat and potatoes.”

Kasey: “Uh, aight. What should we talk about first?”

Kristina: “The… cause of death… is still undetermined…”

Chloé: “Ah, yes, I unfortunately was not able to participate in ze investigation. If you could fill me in, zat would be quite helpful.”  
  
Lyle: “Oh, would it now? You really sure you gotta be filled in?”

Chloé: “Errm… Yes, I do.”  
  
Brandon: “Skip the banter, you two. We have a death to discuss.”

**\-----[NONSTOP DEBATE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6av12TNw-0) \-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: STAB WOUNDS**

Jasper: “So, what should we talk about first?”

Kristina: “The cause… of death…”

Kasey: “Well, she had a rope around her ankle…”

Kasey: “Maybe _the rope has something to do with it?_ ”

Dixie: “Then why was it tied around her ankle?”

Brandon: “Perhaps she was _strangled first, and then they tied it around her ankle?_ ”

Gareth: **_“No, that’s wrong!”_ **

…………………………………………………………

Gareth: “You’re not wrong about the rope being tied around her ankle last, but I don’t think we can say she was strangled first.”

Brandon: “What makes you say that?”

Gareth: “Well, on the body… Sam and I found stab wounds.”  
  
Samuel: “Yes. Exactly 5 stab wounds were in her chest.”

Gareth: “Yeah. I think we can say for certain that the stabbing was the cause of dea-”

Jasper: **_“Not strong enough!”_ **

**\-----[REBUTTAL SHOWDOWN](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoSKrtqg00o) \-----**

**TRUTH BLADE: ROPE MARK**

Jasper: “Now, just a minute! I don’t think we can say that was the cause quite yet!”

Gareth: “What? Why not?”

Jasper: “You guys saw the rope burn on her neck, right?”

Jasper: “I think that makes it fairly obvious _she was strangled!_ ”

Gareth: **_“I’ll cut through your words!”_ **

………………………………………………………….

Gareth: “Jasper, I get why you might think that…”

Gareth: “But the mark on her neck wasn’t deep enough!”

Justine: “Then why would it be there?”

Samuel: “To distract us. To make us believe that she was strangled, rather than stabbed.”

Jarrett: “Damn, for real? This guy’s crafty!”

Luke: “That he is. I’m actually kind of impressed with how he did it. Course, he made a couple of mistakes. Pretty rookie mistakes, at that.”

Dixie: “Whaddya mean by that?”

Luke: “I’m talking about that table and the rope, of course. What was up with that stuff?”

Kasey: “I guess we should just talk about it and find out.”

**\-----[NONSTOP DEBATE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6av12TNw-0) \-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: LADDER**

Luke: “So what was up with the body?”

Dixie: “It was in a really weird spot.”

Brandon: “Wasn’t she _tied to the pillar?_ ”

Samuel: “No, there wasn’t any blood on the pillar.”

Desiré: “But there was rope on the pillar. What could that have been for?”

Kasey: “Maybe they did that to keep her there. Kinda like tying a dog to a post.”

Justine: “That doesn’t explain the table.”

Luke: “Oh! Oh! I know!”

Luke: “What if the body wasn’t tied down…”

Luke: “But instead, _it was hanging from the ceiling!_ ”

Gareth: **_“I agree with that!”_ **

…………………………………………….

Gareth: “Luke… I think you might be right!”

Luke: “Woah, really?”

Gareth: “I couldn’t understand it before, but there were bloodstains on the steps of a ladder in the carpenter’s lab.”

Samuel: “I understand now. The killer used that pillar as an anchor, and used the girders on the ceiling to hang her from the ceiling!”

Gareth: “That would explain a lot of things, actually. The bloodless pillar, the broken table, the ladder with the blood on it.”

Lyle: “Alright, you guys satisfied now? Cus I got somethin’ to say!”

Desiré: “Huh? What is it?”

Lyle: “I just so happen to have some damning evidence!”  
  
Lyle: **_“I talked to the killer twice last night!”_ **

Kasey: “HUH?!”  
  


Jasper: “You did what?!”  
  
Brandon: “Wha-?! That’s ridiculous!”

Luke: “Woah-ho-ho! Now this is an interesting turn of events! Let’s see where this goes.”

Samuel: “Well? Who was it? Who’d you talk to last night?”

Chloé: “Yes, please, do not leave us all in suspense!”

Lyle: “Funny, you should mention that, Chloé. After all…”

Lyle: **_“You’d think the person I talked to would remember that I talked to them.”_ **

Chloé: “H-H- **_HUH?!_ **”

Brandon: “It was Chloé? You’re absolutely certain?”

Lyle: “My eyes might not work, but my ears don’t lie! Chloé was definitely the one I heard!”

Chloé: “Zat is impossible! I did not even meet you last night!!”

Lyle: “Pfft, really? Don’t play dumb. It’s unbecoming of you.”

Kristina: “How are you… so sure… that it was Chloé?”

Lyle: “Are you serious? I know it was her cus of her footsteps, and it was her voice! There’s no mistaking it!”

Lyle: **_“Chloé’s definitely the killer!”_ **

**\-----[NONSTOP DEBATE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6av12TNw-0) \-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: CHLOÉ’S MISSING SHOES**

Lyle: “Last night, I spoke with Chloé twice.”

Lyle: “Once at 9:30…”

Lyle: “And again at 9:50!”

Dixie: “Y’know, this is the second time you were out that late. What gives?”

Lyle: “I like taking walks at night. Helps me clear my head, y’know?”

Kristina: “How are you sure… that it was Chloé?”

Lyle: “2 things; I heard _her voice_ …”

Lyle: “And I _recognized her footsteps!_ ”

Gareth: **_“No, that’s wrong!”_ **

…………………………………………………….

Gareth: “What was that about her footsteps?”

Lyle: “I’ll say it as many times as I need to. I heard her voice, and I heard her footsteps.”

Samuel: “That doesn’t make any sense. At least, not according to the evidence.”  
  
Lyle: “Whaddya mean? You sayin I’m wrong?”

Samuel: “Not just yet. But, when we found Chloé in the locker room, she didn’t have shoes on!”

Gareth: “Yeah! And she didn’t have any time to put them back on either!”

Lyle: “Wha-? She… didn’t have shoes on?”

Chloé: “Oui, oui! I ‘ave not ‘ad my shoes since last night!”

Justine: “Why the shit don’t you have your shoes?”

Chloé: “Last night, I was attacked!”

Brandon: “I think we should listen to her story. It could shed more light on this case.”

**\-----[NONSTOP DEBATE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXSH3q8F96E) \-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: TOWEL WITH CHEMICALS**

Chloé: “Last night, at 9:25, I was attacked from behind!”

Chloé: “Ze killer snuck up from behind, and _knocked me unconscious!_ ”

Dixie: “Is that all?”

Samuel: “We found her in the locker room, so no.”  
  
Lyle: “Hold on! How can we be sure?”  
  
Lyle: “She could’ve killed Asuka…”

Lyle: “And then _hid in the locker room!_ ”

Lyle: “Not just that, but…”

Lyle: “ _How would they have_ _knocked her out?_ ”

Gareth: **_“No, that’s wrong!”_ **

……………………………………………………..

Gareth: “They knocked her out with the towel!”  
  
Lyle: “Huh? What towel?”

Gareth: “At the carpenter’s lab, there was a towel soaked with chemicals! More specifically, chemicals designed to knock someone unconscious!”

Justine: “So they knocked Chloé out with that towel thing, and dragged her into the locker room?”  
  


Brandon: “Then why would the towel be at the carpenter’s lab?”

Samuel: “Most likely, the killer intentionally misplaced the evidence to make us believe that the events happened in a different order.”

Lyle: “Different order...?”

Gareth: “If I were to guess, the killer wanted us to think that Asuka was knocked out, strangled, and stabbed. When in actuality, she was only stabbed and tied.”

Luke: “Ooooohhhh, so the towel and Omnipad that were in the carpenter’s lab weren’t used on Asuka. And the knife you guys probably found was in the locker room. That’s pretty devious!”

Samuel: “Clearly, not devious enough. I mean, we were able to solve it rather quickly.”

Luke: “I do have one question though; what locker room was she in?”

Jarrett: “I think she was in the boy’s…”

Luke: “Alright then, here’s another question; if the killer used an Omnipad, why would they have put her in the wrong locker room?”

Kasey: “Or, a better question; why the heck didn’t they use Chloé’s Monopad?”

Jasper: “Maybe it’s not that they wouldn’t, but instead, they couldn’t.”

Dixie: “Y’mean that she hid it somewhere on her?”

Kristina: “She… doesn’t have many pockets though…”

Samuel: “It would have to be somewhere on her that no one could find...”

Hidden somewhere on her person that no one could find? Wait, maybe it’s not that. Maybe it’s somewhere no one would dare to look. And the only place I can think of that fits that description is…

**\-----[HANGMAN’S GAMBIT](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPr9lIPu3Ws&t=6s) \-----**

A Y X **P** Y

**A** T U **N**

I Y **T** **I** T

**E** G **S**

**PANTIES**

Gareth: **_“Now I understand!”_ **

…………………………………………….

Ok, so, I know what I just said about how I understand now. But, like… I really wish I didn’t. But I have no other choice. I have to keep going!

Gareth: “Uh, Chloé?”

Chloé: “Hm? What is it?”

Gareth: “Your, um, Monopad. Is it in your, umm… your panties?”

Kasey: “Woah! Straight to the point! Poggers! I like it!”

Jasper: “Gareth! What’s gotten into you?!”

Gareth: “Nothing! It’s just that, it’s not a place someone would wanna look…”

Brandon: “Even so, it is unbecoming of one such as yourself! It’s foul and debaucherous!”

Luke: “I dunno. Seems fitting for a bitch like her.”

Justine: “Luke. Seriously. Shut the fuck up dude.”

Chloé: “W-W-W-W- **_HOW DID YOU KNOW?!_ **”

Brandon: “HUH?!”

Gareth: “WAIT I WAS RIGHT?!”

Kasey: “Woah! For real? That’s bonkers dawg!”

Lyle: “I really wish I weren’t here right now.”

Samuel: “I… guess that solves that.”

Luke: “So, the killer knocked Chloé out, dragged her to the boy’s locker room, used an Omnipad to open it, took Chloé’s shoes, and then, they used their OWN Monopad to leave. Sounds pretty complicated.”

Samuel: “Not just that, but they placed the knife they used to kill Asuka in one of the lockers.”

Lyle: “You mean that all of that was done… just to trick me?”

Gareth: “Sorry, Lyle…”

Lyle: “Tch… damn. I can’t believe it. I guess… my ears can lie, so long as they’re being lied to. Sorry, Chloé...”

Chloé: “It is of no concern, Lyle. You were just saying what you thought was right.”

Dixie: **_“Look here, darn it!”_ **

**\-----[REBUTTAL SHOWDOWN](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoSKrtqg00o) \-----**

**TRUTH BLADE: BLOODY LETTER**

Dixie: “We ain’t done quite yet! There’s still stuff we ain’t answered yet!”

Gareth: “Huh? Like what?”

Dixie: “Well, this whole darn thing took place in the Talent Development Station, did’n’ it?”

Gareth: “Yeah?”

Dixie: “Exactly! What were they doin’ in there at that time ‘a night?”

Dixie: “More specifically…”

Dixie: “ _What in tarnation_ _was Asuka doin in my lab?_ ”

Gareth: **_“I’ll cut through your words!”_ **

……………………………………………….

Gareth: “To answer your question, Dixie, Asuka received a letter that told her to head specifically to your lab.”  
  
Samuel: “Chloé received one of these letters as well. Both of them were labeled ‘Mastermind’, but I think it’s safe to say that the actual mastermind isn’t responsible for these letters.”

Dixie: “Ah. Well, I s’pose that explains that. Sorry to bother you two fellers.”

Samuel: “No problem. Now, I think it’s about time we finish this.”

Gareth: “Huh? Have you already figured out who it was?”

Sam turned to me and began whispering; “Think, Gareth. Think about what we all just discussed. Wasn’t there something someone said that seemed a little off?” I began thinking about what everyone had said. Then, like a bolt of lightning, the answer hit me!

Gareth: “Jarrett.”

Jarrett: “Huh? What?”

Gareth: “When we were talking about which locker room Chloé was in; do you remember what you said?”

Jarrett: “Uhh… I said the boy’s locker room. Nothin’ wrong with that, right? I mean, that was the one she was in.”

Samuel: “Yes, you’re correct. And that’s exactly the problem.”

Dixie: “Huh? Why would him being right be a problem?”

Samuel: “One reason; [**_no one mentioned which locker room she was in before_ **](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRMr8Jv_ZP4&t=52s)”

Lyle: “Wha?! You serious?”

Gareth: “Yeah. The only people who should’ve known which locker room she was in were me, Sherlock, Lyle, and Chloé!”

Samuel: “Can you explain why you knew that? Information that only the four of us would’ve known?”

Jarrett: “W-W-Woah, a-are you sayin’ I’m the killer? Just ‘cus I knew which locker room she was in?”

Gareth: “Actually, it’s not just that; out of all of us here, you’re the only one capable or perfectly imitating voices!”

Samuel: “And since Lyle can only recognize us by our voices, then the only one capable of completely tricking him into thinking they were someone else… is you.”

Gareth: “So, Jarrett? Care to explain?”

Jarrett: **_“Hold on a sec!”_ **

**\-----[REBUTTAL SHOWDOWN](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoSKrtqg00o) \-----**

**TRUTH BLADE: MONOKUMA’S ACCOUNT**

Jarrett: “J-just slow down, ok?”  
  
Gareth: “If you can just explain yourself-”

Jarrett: “Explain myself? What is there to explain?”

Jarrett: “Last night, I didn’t go anywhere, let alone the locker rooms!”

Jarrett: “Let alone attack anybody!”

Jarrett: “I mean, _is there any proof I could’ve been in the locker room?_ ”

Gareth: **_“I’ll cut through those words!”_ **

……………………………………………………

Gareth: “Actually, there is; according to Monokuma, both an Omnipad and standard Monopad were used in the locker room last night.”

Jarrett: “Wha-?”

Monokuma: “E-yup! There sure was! Of course, I’m not saying who.”

Samuel: “But, knowing what we know now, I think it’s safe to say that it was you who used those Pads.”

Jarrett: “I-I-I-”

Lyle: “You bastard! You used me! You had me set someone up who wasn’t even the killer! All so you could get away scot free!”

Jarrett: “Alright! I admit it! I tricked Lyle! I killed Asuka! **_I’m sooorrrryyyy!!!_ **”

Lyle: “Everything from the voice to the crash was all cus ‘a you!”

Jarrett: “Gah! That stupid crash! I’d be fine right now if that didn’t go wrong!”

Lyle: “Huh?”

Jarrett: “That rope should be strong enough to hold someone up! She shouldn’t have fallen at all!”

Luke: “Oh, that was me.”

Jarrett: “Wha-?”

Luke: “Yeah. That crashing sound? Her falling onto the table and breaking it? All me.”

Brandon: “You mean to tell me that you found the body and _didn’t tell anyone?!_ ”

Luke: “Yep! Sure did!”

Gareth: “Wh- WHY?!”

After I said that, Luke’s eyes turned into something hideous. There’s a saying that eyes are the window to the soul. If that’s true, then this soul was full of nothing but hatred and cruelty. The kind of hatred that exists for no reason other than its own existence. At that moment, I could see that Luke wasn’t a person; he was hatred given form. Pure, unadulterated hatred.

Luke: **_“[Cus I thought it’d be fun! Why does anyone do anything? To have fun! Zehahahahahaha!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3EHCTP3jic)”_ **

Jarrett: “Y-you little twerp! My plan was perfect! But you had to come along and mess it up!”

Luke: **_“Oh please. Your plan was ‘perfect’? You’ve gotta be kidding me.”_ **

Jarrett: “Wha-?”

Luke: **_“Your plan has far too many steps. I can’t really blame you, though. After all, you’re just an amateur, attempting to hide just how inexperienced you are! But in your amateurish attempts to hide your amateurishness, you ended up biting off more than you could chew. You’re a disgrace, Jarrett Laurn. Gareth!”_ **

I was shaken. He tore into him with such vitriol, such nonchalant cruelty. “W-what? What is it?” I asked.

Luke: **_“Can you wrap this up already? I thought this could be a fun distraction, but all it’s doing is boring me. Just tell everyone what happened so that we can get this snoozefest over with.”_ **

Samuel: “I really, _really_ hate to admit it, but… he’s right. Finish this, Gareth”

With that, I thought about it. All of it. All the evidence we found, and all the events, in order. Until finally, I finished…

**\-----[CLOSING ARGUMENT](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeADIKWpWks) \-----**

Gareth: **_“Here’s what really happened!”_ **

**ACT 1:**

In order to get a solid grasp of what happened, we have to look at these events in order. First, Asuka and Chloé both received a letter, telling them to go to different labs at different times. Asuka was told to arrive at 9:20 PM.

**ACT 2:**

Once 9:20 came, Asuka arrived in the carpenter’s lab as instructed. However, rather than finding the mastermind, instead she found something even worse; the culprit, who attacked and killed her with a knife.

**ACT 3:**

After Asuka was killed, the culprit set about ‘fixing’ the crime scene. They first took a rope, and tightened around Asuka’s neck, in order to make it look like she had been strangled. Then, using that same rope, they took the ladder, tied the rope around her ankles, anchored her down by tying her to the pillar, and suspended her body upside-down in mid-air!

**ACT 4:**

Once that was done, the culprit left the carpenter’s lab, and attacked their next victim; Chloé. They attacked her from behind with the chemical-soaked towel, and dragged her off to the locker room. They originally intended to put her in the girl’s locker room with her Monopad, however, due to the way it was… hidden, they had to use an Omnipad instead. Once they put her in the boy’s locker room, they took her shoes, and placed the knife they’d used to kill Asuka in one of the lockers. Once they were all done with their business there, they left to begin the penultimate step in their scheme.

**ACT 5:**

Leaving the locker room, the culprit encountered Lyle; all according to their plan. Using their vocal talent, they impersonated Chloé, and tricked Lyle into believing he was actually talking to her. Once Lyle was successfully tricked, they left, and proceeded to the final phase of their plan.

**ACT 6:**

Placing the Omnipad and the towel in the carpenter’s lab, the culprit thought their plan had gone off without a hitch. However, they couldn’t be more wrong. Unbeknownst to them, Luke was aware of exactly what they were doing, and he had his own plans in store. After leaving the carpenter’s lab, the culprit encountered Lyle one last time, outside the school. In order to finalize their plan, they impersonated Chloé once again. However, this was also when Luke had enacted his own plan, and cut the rope that Asuka was suspended from. Asuka’s body falling onto the table created a loud crashing noise that managed to scare the culprit into abandoning their plan, and retreating back to the dorms.

Gareth: **_“And the only one who was capable of pulling off such a ruse, was none other than Jarrett Laurn, the Ultimate Voice Actor!”_ **

………………………………………………………..

Justine: “Well, I guess that settles that then.”

Brandon: “So, does that mean we’re all settled? On who the real culprit is?”

Monokuma: “You’re all set? In that case, it’s time! Time to make the final decision! Will you make the right choice, or the dreadfully wrong one? Without further ado, iiiiiiiiit’s voting time!!”

**\----- CLASS TRIAL COMPLETE -----**

Jarrett’s ‘avatar’ appeared on the slot machine, and, just like last time, Monokuma commented on what happened; “Congratulations! You guys are right once again! I’m kinda impressed!” He cackled. Lyle rushed over to where Jarrett was standing; “Damn it man! Why?! Why didn’t you kill me? Or Chloé? Why… why the hell did you do it?!”

Jarrett just stood there, in silence. “Monokuma… just do it already. I’m done. I’m not gonna run away.” Jarrett lamented. “No, dammit! I want an explanation! Why didn’t you kill me?! Why?! **_Why?!_ ** ” Lyle demanded. “‘Cus you’re strong. All of you. I wanted to respect that strength. So please… get outta here. No matter what.” Jarrett said. And, on cue as always, Monokuma said; “So, you’ve made your peace? Said your last words? Alrighty then, iiiiiiiiit’s **_Punishment Time!!!_ **”

……………………………………………………….

The same gigantic screen appeared in front of us again. Jarrett, wearing headphones was in what appeared to be a recording booth. Suddenly, the ‘title card’ appeared; 

**AWFUL AUDITION: LEGENDARY DEATH NOTE**

Jarrett made one noise into the microphone, and almost immediately, the sound amplified and echoed. It kept echoing, and echoing, louder and louder and louder. Jarrett’s eyes began to tear up; he tried to take the headphones off, but they were stuck. Eventually, Jarrett’s eyes rolled back into his head, blood ran down his nose, and he collapsed.

…………………………………………………………

After Jarrett was killed, we all stood there. That stunned silence was all too familiar to us at this point. “Well… we all know what we have to do.” Sam said. Brandon turned to face Luke. “You. Imp.” he said, in a far more menacing tone than usual. “Huh? Whaddya want?” Luke said, unimpressed. “You didn’t report that body. Instead, you made everything that much more difficult. Surely, you must face some sort of punishment.” Brandon said. Monokuma came between the two of them; “Actually, Luke didn’t violate any rules, so he’s off the hook.” “See? What I did was totally fine!” Luke taunted. “Wha-? That’s ridiculous! Surely, someone must bring some justice down upon you!” Brandon said. 

“Justice?” Luke said. [Then, just as they had before, his eyes sank into those wretched black pools; soulless mirrors of pure evil](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3EHCTP3jic). **_“You’re gonna make me laugh so hard I choke. You say you want ‘Justice’? Don’t be stupid. Justice is just how laws are enforced, and the school rules are essentially this place’s ‘laws’. Your precious ‘justice’ doesn’t exist here.”_ ** He said. “Luke, what is it you want?” Sam asked. **_“What do I want? Simple. We’re playing a game. And I intend to have fun.”_ ** He answered. “A game, huh?” Sam began, “In that case, I’ll play along with you. **_Consider me your opponent._ ** ” The two had a staredown. It felt like sparks were shooting out of their eyes. **_“Zehahahahahaha! Alright then! I’ll let you be my opponent! But be aware;”_ **

**_“I have every intention of killing you, and everyone else here. Do you understand?”_ **

“Fine then. I won’t let you win. I hope you’re ready, Luke.” Sam said. After their exchange, Luke smiled and left the room. Shortly after he left, we all began leaving. Sam was one of the last to leave, and I walked beside him; “Sam, I just want you to know; I wanna help you. I wanna help you beat Luke.” I said. Sam looked at me, and smiled. “Thank you, Gareth. It’s always nice to have an ally to depend on.” With that, we all returned to our rooms, and once I layed on my bed, I drifted off into another restless sleep.

**_Chapter 2: Voices From the Wild Blue Yonder_ **

**_END_ **


	6. Eye of Hawk, Will of Iron Part 1(Daily Life)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gareth has a strange dream, and has a very important meeting with the most dangerous person on the facitlity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOPEFUL SKIES NOW HAS FANART!! Very special thanks to Yosu on Twitter for the amazing art of Lyle, Chloé, and Gareth! I've put it all at the bottom of the page, check them out!!! (remember: @yosuvarley on Twitter!!)

**SURVIVING STUDENTS: 12**

**GARETH TAYLOR: ULTIMATE ASSISTANT**

**SAMUEL HERLOCK: ULTIMATE DETECTIVE**

**LYLE MORDEN: ULTIMATE GUNMAN**

**BRANDON GASH: ULTIMATE BIRD-WATCHER**

**LUKE ZAVARD: ULTIMATE TRICKSTER**

**JASPER GORDIN: ULTIMATE BODYBUILDER**

**KRISTINA HALL: ULTIMATE BLOGGER**

**KASEY GARA: ULTIMATE STREAMER**

**CHLOÉ CHANEL: ULTIMATE PERFUMER**

**DESIRÉ GALICA: ULTIMATE DRIVER**

**DIXIE GRAYSON: ULTIMATE CARPENTER**

**JUSTINE CASSLER: ULTIMATE PARKOUR RUNNER**

……………………………………………………….

**_Chapter 3: Eye of Hawk, Will of Iron_ **

**_Daily Life_ **

……………………………………………………….

Who am I?

...

I’m… Gareth Taylor.

That’s who I am.

I am Gareth Taylor. Gareth Taylor is me.

…..

But…

Who’s that?

Who is me?

Do I know me?

What is me?

What makes a me?

Is me set in stone? Or can me change?

What changes me?

How can I change me?

…

Are me and Gareth Taylor… the same?

……………………………………………………………….

I was awoken from my strange dream by the sound of the morning announcement. Even so, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. It was just… me, falling, in an endless black void. The only noise were those words, echoing around in my head. And yet, even though they were my thoughts, I couldn’t even begin to decipher what they meant. I decided to just ignore them for now. I mean, it was just a dream, after all.

I began the walk towards the dining hall, as per usual, when I ran into Lyle. “Yo!” I said. “Oh, it’s you, Gareth…” He trailed off.“Hey, Gareth, I got a question for ya.” Lyle said. “Huh? What is it?” “How come you wanna help people? Is it cus ‘a some tragic past? What motivates you?” He asked. I put my hand on my chin, and I came up with what I felt was a proper answer; “Because… it’s what I think is right. Everyone needs help, whether it be something as simple as lifting something heavy, to as complicated as a shoulder to cry on. I want to be the kind of person that someone, anyone, can depend on.” I answered. “Huh. Y’know, when ya put it like that, ya kinda sound like a superhero.” Lyle said, notably surprised. “Alright, now I get to ask you a question, Lyle.” I said. “Oh yeah? Is it the same question? You wanna know why I’ve killed people?” Lyle said. “Uhhh… maybe another time. I just wanted to know… why do you wear sunglasses? I mean, if you’re blind, then you don’t need to shield your eyes from the sun, right?” I asked. “Oh? Seriously? That’s it? Well, uhh… I just thought they might look kinda intimidating. Plus, they look super cool, don’t they? I’m your average Steadman Slick!” He explained. As we walked to the dining hall, we discussed what other fashion items might be considered “slick”. Lyle and I grew a little closer today.

We arrived in the dining hall, to see all the usual faces, save for… those who we’d lost. “G’mornin’, you two! Kinda pog for you guys to show up right now!” Kasey said. “Why?” Lyle asked. “I was just telling everyone that some more areas in the Talent Development Station are open. I suggest we investigate them, like last time.” Sam explained. “I’m guessing you’re gonna investigate the Medbay, Sam? And that you want me to come with you?” I asked Sam. “Oh, we’re all going. We have to see which labs are open. We should all see and see, then come back here.” Sam said. “And, now that we’re all here, we should just go there right now. After we eat, of course.”

We all sat down, and I sat next to Sam, Brandon sat next to Lyle, Kristina sat next to Kasey, and Dixie, Jasper, and Justine formed their own little group near the end. Chloé, however, sat alone. We all ate and talked amongst ourselves for about 2 minutes. Those minutes didn’t last. That joviality we all had quickly evaporated… when Luke walked in. 

“Wassup, you murderous monsters! How’s it goin’?” Luke spewed. “Why are you here, fiend?” Brandon questioned. “Well, I’ve gotta eat too! Or do you think I’m some sort of inhuman monster?” He said. “Hey, you said it, not us…” Lyle quipped. “Oh, I also came here to tell you; I already looked at the new opened labs. Sorry to spoil your fun!” Luke said, an eerie smile creeping onto his face. “Well then, save us the trouble and tell us!” Dixie said. “Oh, don’t worry, I will…  **_if you get on your hands and knees and lick my shoes._ ** ” He said. “Wha-?!” Jasper stammered. “Kidding! Kidding. It’s the detective’s lab, the, the body-builder, the driver’s, and…” another creepy smile,  **_“mine”_ ** . “Wait, how does that even work? Why do  _ you _ have a lab?” Justine asked. “I dunno, and I don’t really care either. All I know is that those are labs that opened. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a bagel with my name on it.” Luke said, going back into the kitchen and coming back out with a bagel with cream cheese.

“Oh, by the way.” Luke began, pointing at me. “I wanna talk to you later.  **_Look forward to it._ ** ” After that… threat(?) Luke left. “Hmph. I certainly hope he isn’t going to try anything.” Brandon said. “Hmm… I’d say you should take him up on that offer, but like… be careful. Just in case he tries to pull something.” Jasper said. “I guess… it couldn’t hurt?” Kristina said. “Actually, it might be a good opportunity to get some… intel, if you catch my drift?” Lyle said. “Whaddya mean?” Dixie asked. “Well, I mean, think about it. Luke’s made it fairly obvious at this point that he ain’t gonna help us. Or even cooperate with us. But we still don’t know why. If he wants to talk to Gareth, I think it’s a good opportunity for us to learn exactly what he wants.” Lyle said, walking towards me, hand outstretched. He put his hand on my shoulder; “So, Gareth… think you’re up to it?” He asked. I exhaled through my nose, as if to show I was deep in thought, and I answered; “Yeah. Yeah, I think I can do it.”

“That’s the spirit!” Lyle said, patting my back. We all finished eating, and we all left the dining hall. I returned to my dorm. As I was laying down in my bed, I thought to myself; As much time as I spent with the others, I didn’t really know them all that well. I decided to try and talk to some of the people I hadn’t talked to since I’d gotten here. I stepped out and saw that Kasey’s room was on Do Not Disturb. Despite this, I reached out to ring the doorbell. Just before I was able to push it, that annoying bear popped up out of nowhere. “Woah, woah, woah, woah! You can’t do that! Can’t you see the sign? Don’t make me tap the sign!” Monokuma spouted. “What, you mean the do not disturb sign?” I said. “Well, duhhhh!! It’s set to that for a reason! You’re not allowed to use the doorbell or knock on the door of someone who’s door is on DnD! It’s a rule!” He said. “What, no it’s not! That’s never been a rule!” I yelled. “Oh yeah? Well it is now! How do ya like that, tough guy?!” A noise came from my Monopad, signaling some sort of notification. I checked to see what it was, and, sure enough, a new rule had been added about the rule.

With that, Monokuma simply disappeared. I begrudgingly walked away from the door, and decided to simply walk around. As much as I definitely didn’t like Luke, I still needed to talk to him. The only problem was I didn’t know where he was. So I decided that if I couldn’t find him, I’d just let him come to me. And, sure enough, after about 20 minutes of wandering around the facility, I found myself in front of the Medbay. After another 5 minutes, I heard that trademark whiny voice.

“There you are. Jeez, you are hard to find, ain’tcha?” Luke said. “When I need to be. What’d you want to talk about?” I responded. “Well, I just wanted to ask you a couple questions. Seeing as how we, y’know, don’t know each other.” He said. “Alright then. I’ve got some questions for you, too.” I said. “Fine by me, long as I go first.” Luke said. “Alright, first question:  **_what exactly do you want?_ ** ” He asked “Huh? What do you mean?” “I mean your goals. You’re the Ultimate Assistant. Your talent is literally just riding someone’s coat-tails. So why? Why is it that every time someone dies, you’re always the one to reveal the killer’s scheme?” He said. “And don’t gimme that shit ‘Sherlock asked me to’. I want an actual answer. Do ya do it out of some sick sense of sadism? What? What?! Spit it out!” Luke mocked. I thought about it for a moment. After about 30 seconds of silence I finally answered. “The truth.” “Huh?” Luke bemused. “You heard me. The truth. I believe that, no matter how much it hurts, the truth must be found.” I clarified. “Well… can’t say I didn’t totally expect that. I knew I’d hear something about it if I asked a question like that.”

“Anyways! Onto question numbeeer two!” Luke said, doing a little drumroll on his knees. “Alright:  **_What are you willing to do to get out of here?_ ** ” Once again, I had to think about what he had said. “Well, I’m sure you expected this answer, but I’m not gonna kill anyone. I’m gonna work with the others to get out of here. I know you might say that answer’s ‘boring’ or something like that, but it’s the truth.” I answered. “Huh. You were right about one thing. I  _ was _ gonna call it a boring answer. But seeing as how you knew I’d say that, there’s no point, is there?” Luke said. “I think it’s time for my question now.” I said. “Alright then, big fella. Fire away.” 

I needed to find out what he was after. What was his goal. Why was he so… well, difficult. “ **_What is it that you want?_ ** ” I asked. “More specifically, why don’t you want to help us?” “Heh. I expected that. You really wanna know?” Luke said. “I have to know. I need to know why.” I said. “Alright then. The truth.” Luke began. His eyes became those all-too-familiar abysses, and that same disgusting smile seemed to manifest along with it. 

**_“Because I want you all to hate me. Everyone out there in the world wants to be loved. To be accepted. And in order to be accepted, they bend over backwards, all for some schmuck to have a good opinion of them. I think the struggle to be loved is meaningless. It’s much easier to simply be hated. That’s why, no matter where I go, I want people to hate me. I can rest easy, so long as I know that people hate me.”_ **

When he finished, I couldn’t help but feel this overwhelming sense of dread. A sickening feeling of **_despair_** washed over me with his words. **_“Now, let me ask you one last question, Mr. Assistant.”_** Luke said. Clenching my fist, and making a (rather audible) gulp, I said; “Go ahead.”

**_“Do you hate me?”_ **

“I…” I began. I really didn’t know. Even though he’d done so many awful things, did I… really  _ hate _ him? Could I? I looked down at the skull necklace, took a deep breath, and said; “You said it’s easier for you to be hated, right? Then, in that case, I won’t give you that satisfaction.”  **_“Huh?”_ ** Luke bemused. “You’re my friend, Luke. No matter how difficult you may be, I consider you my friend.” I said. As soon as I said that, Luke’s eyes darkened even further. His eerie smile morphed into a grimace. I could see him gritting his teeth, hard enough to the point where a small amount of blood started to drip out from between his teeth. I could see a vein start to pop out on the top of his head, and he also clenched his fist. All I could feel from him was genuine hatred. A hatred so overwhelming I held my breath. However, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and just like that, that malicious aura vanished. “Well then, guess I gotta step my game up. Nice talkin’ to you, Gareth.” Luke said, waving a hand behind him. I let my breath go, and started breathing normally. Despite our misgivings, me and Luke grew a little bit closer today.

After that encounter, I was exhausted, and decided to head back to my dorm to rest and process what had happened. On my way back, I happened to see Chloé coming out of the Talent Development Station. “Hey Chloé, whatcha up to?” I asked. Surprised, she whipped her head towards me; “None of your business, assistant!” She pouted. Clearly, she didn’t want to be talked to. And who was I to try and bother her. I decided to simply go back to my dorm, silently, and I layed down on the bed. Eventually, my eyes began to close, I heard the nighttime announcement, and I began to drift off to sleep…

……………………………………………

I am me. I am me.

That’s who I am. Me. No one else.

…

But who is me?

Can I find me?

Can you go to a store and buy me?

How many mes can there be?

…

………………………………………………….

I woke up, just as confused as the last time I had that dream. (Was that the same dream? I can’t even remember.) In any case, I left my room to head to the dining hall. Surprisingly, I didn’t actually see anyone on my way there. When I arrived, everyone was eating breakfast. “Ah, Gareth, you’re up. Come have a seat right here.” Sherlock said, indicating a seat next to him.

I took a seat, and there was a plate of pancakes for me. I ate for a little bit, when Dixie asked; “So, how’d y’all sleep?”. I swallowed the pancakes that were in my mouth, and said; “well, uh, I slept ok. I did have this weird dream though…” I said. Sherlock turned to me, “Oh? What was it about?” He asked. “Well… it was just words. It was my voice and kept saying stuff about ‘what is me?’ and weird stuff like that-” I said. Sherlock suddenly stood up, and slammed his palms on the table. “Tell me- in that dream, did you see yourself? Did you see yourself in some sort of pitch-black void?” He asked. “Uhh… yeah, I did. Why?” I asked. “That’s… strange. Are you… absolutely sure... that was what you saw?” Kristina asked me. “Y-yeah, I’m sure.” I said. Sherlock then said something none of us could’ve expected; “I’m asking because…”

**_“I had the exact same dream.”_ **

“Y-you what?” I sputtered. “You guys saw it too? You all saw yourselves in a void?” Lyle questioned. “You saw it? Even though you’re blind? That’s totally weirdchamp! But I saw the same thing!” Kasey said. “It appears we’ve all had the same dream… but why? What in the world could it mean?” Sherlock pondered. “I’m glad you all finally recognized it! I thought it was gonna take forever. Sheesh, you guys sure do take your time.” Monokuma said, popping up out of nowhere.

“Tch! As expected.” Brandon said. “Lemme guess- those shitty dreams are our next motive?” Justine jeered. “Bingo! Your next motive is the truth of those bizarre drea-!”

**_“You can waste your time talking about your dreams later”_ **

Another whiny voice entered the room; Luke, with a smug grin on his face, walked into the dining hall. “Wha-! How dare you! I was in the middle of something  _ dramatic _ !” Monokuma yelled. “You stupid bear. Ya really think I’d be here if I didn’t have something  **_interesting_ ** to show everyone?” Luke coyly said. “What exactly… do you mean by… interesting?” Kristina said. “Well…” Luke began;

**_“Let’s just say you’re not gonna need a motive this time around.”_ **

“Luke!” Brandon shouted. “Quit playing coy! We are all far too familiar with what you consider ‘interesting’! Now stop wasting time and tell us what happened!”. “Well, how’s ‘bout I just show y’all instead?” Luke said, beckoning us to come. We all followed him, out the school, and to the medbay where we saw it.

An all too familiar sight. It had only been a day, and yet…

“ **_GOD FUCKING DAMN IT!!_ ** ” Justine shouted. “This… can’t be!” Kristina stuttered. “Wait, don’t tell me… no, no not again!” Lyle cried.

No matter how much we protested, there was nothing we could do. In front of us, lying face down on the path, right in front of the medbay, was Chloé’s body, bloody and lifeless. Once again, that horrible announcement rang out across the facility, even though we were all there…

**_“A body has been discovered! Everybody, get your investigations ready! Then, after a short period of time, gear up for another Class Trial!”_ **

  
  


**TO BE CONTINUED**

  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, a HUUUUGE thanks to @yosuvarley on Twitter for the art! Go give them a follow if you haven't!


	7. Eye of Hawk, Will of Iron Part 2 (Deadly Life)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The investigation begins, and a shocking truth is revealed within the Class Trial

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was finally able to buckle down and get this chapter done. I'll still be working on chapter 4. Look forward to it!

**_Chapter 3: Eye of Hawk, Will of Iron_ ** **_  
_ ** **_  
_ ** **_DEADLY LIFE_ **

All we could do was stare. Chloé’s body was lying, face-down, in a bloody puddle, in front of the medbay. “Da-da-da-daaa! Say my name and I magically appear!” Monokuma said. “No one said your fucking name, you dipshit bear!” Justine retorted. “Get lost, already!” Kasey followed up. “Wha-wha?! But how will you ever solve the crime without…” He pulled out those familiar thin tablets, “ _ these _ bad boys?” He finished, giving them out to each of us. “Alright, that’s all I really needed to do here. Now, I’ll do as was asked and ‘get lost’. But I’m a rather busy bear, so don’t you call for me unless it’s uber important, get me?” Monokuma threatened, showcasing a rather sharp claw jutting out of his black paw.

And with that, he disappeared. “Bah! It appears we must investigate… again.” Brandon said. “I guess so. But why? Why did this happen again?” Jasper asked. “I’m sure, if we investigate, we’ll find out. It’s not like we can do much else right now, anyways.” Samuel assured. “Well, Gareth? Shall we?” He asked me. Grimacing, I replied, “A… alright. I guess we should get down to it…”

**\-----** [ **INVESTIGATION START** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kl4VnTNuS-0) **\-----**

“Well, as usual, let’s start with the Monokuma file.” Sam instructed, powering the device on. “The victim was Chloé Chanel. The murder occured at around 9:10 PM.” Sam read aloud. “No cause of death again…” I wondered aloud. “And not even a mention of any wounds, either. That’s… bizarre.” Sam concurred.   
  
**MONOKUMA FILE 3 ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“In any case, this investigation may prove to be… quicker than the others.” Sam mentioned. “Huh? Why’s that?” Desiré asked from the side. “Well, the murder clearly took place out in the open. And it appears our culprit was either too sloppy to move the body… or they were running out of time.” He explained. My mind began wondering; was that really true? “But what if they left it out here on purpose? I mean, the more space there is, the less there is to investigate. The less there is to investigate…” “Then the less evidence we can use against them. That’s… rather ingenious, actually.” Sam finished. “Please… don’t compliment… the killer…” Kristina said. 

**BODY’S LOCATION ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Well, even so, there are still things to investigate. So let’s get to it. The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can start the trial and find the culprit.” Sam quickly wrapped up the conversation, and began walking towards the body. “Right!” I exclaimed, walking towards the body with him. As we arrived, I noticed I wasn’t bothered by the dead body’s stench. “Man, I can’t believe I’ve gotten used to the smell of corpses…” I lamented to myself. “Wait!” Sam said, holding his hand out. “Huh? What is it?” “Didn’t you notice? There’s a massive puddle of blood here.” Sam explained. “Yeah? What about it?” “I’d like you to take note of it. Something seems… strange.” Sam said.

**PUDDLE OF BLOOD ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

As I poked my head over Sam’s arms, I noticed some sort of object, not far from the puddle. “Hey, what is that thing?” I said, pointing towards it. We both walked over to inspect it; “It appears to be some sort of unmarked metal perfume bottle.” Sam said, hand on his chin. “That means it’s… probably Chloé’s.” I said. “It would appear so. But it seems that some of the perfume inside leaked out.” he said, pointing out the small purple puddle that appeared to be coming out of the open top. “What in the world is that?” I asked. “There seems to be some left. We can use my lab later to analyze it.” Sam said. A small inkling of a thought began to form in my head. But what it was, I wasn’t sure quite yet, so I just decided to write down our findings.   
  
**EMPTY PERFUME BOTTLE ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

**PURPLE LIQUID ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Alright, now let’s move on to the body.” Sam said, briskly moving towards it, with me not far behind. When we got to the body, Sam knelt down and began his standard practice of feeling it. “Ok, Sherlock, what have we got?” I asked. “Well,firstly…” He began. “There’s a large stab wound in her chest, and it’s most likely the cause of this puddle. I’m not too sure what could’ve caused a wound like this, but I’m sure we’ll find out sooner or later.” Sam explained.

**STAB WOUND ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Next…” Sam held up Chloé’s lifeless hand, “Her wrist appears to be broken. Again, not too sure what could’ve caused it, but whatever did, I think it’s safe to say it knocked the perfume bottle out of her hands.” “What makes you say that?” I asked. “Because, there’s a small bit of that purple liquid that’s stuck to her fingertips, almost like paint.” Sam explained. “Why would paint be in a perfume bottle?” Luke interrupted. “...I said it’s like paint, not  _ actual _ paint, Luke.” Sam corrected. “Oh, I see. Carry on, smartypants.” Luke said smugly. “Let’s just ignore him for now. I doubt he has anything useful to share.” Sam said. I nodded my head, and put the new information down on my Monopad.   
  
**BROKEN WRIST ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

**LIQUID ON FINGERTIPS ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS** **  
  
**

“Finally…” Sam pointed to the back of her head, “It appears her skull was caved in.” “Just like Hayate…” I murmured. “Quite the opposite, actually. This one was a lot more… sloppy, let’s just say.” Sam corrected. “Honestly, were this the only wound she had suffered, it’s entirely possible she could have lived. Although, it would certainly destabilize her cognitive ability…” “Wait, so you’re saying, if she just got her head hit like that, she could’ve lived?!” I yelled. “Yes, I am. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen…” Sam said somberly, looking down towards the ground. “And now we have to investigate her…” I stopped myself from finishing. To avoid thinking about it more, I simply wrote down the new info in the monopad. 

**CAVED-IN SKULL ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Is… is that it?” I asked. “It appears to be. In which case, we only have one thing left: checking what that purple liquid is.” Sam said. “Actually, can we… check inside the Medbay? There might be something in there.” I asked. Sam put his hand on his chin, and said. “Alright, that actually sounds good. But what exactly are you looking for.” “I’m not really looking for anything, it’s just… maybe the killer hid something in there, or there’s something out of the ordinary, y’know.” I answered. “Fair enough. It seems some of my detective intuition might’ve rubbed off on you.” Sam said, grinning.

We walked into the Medbay, and everything…  _ seemed _ normal. But as I had come to learn, not everything is as it seems at first glance. We split up to check various different things. I checked the shelves, and found something that caught my eye… “‘Cure-it-all’?” I read. “Well, what is it?” Sam questioned. “‘Feeling nauseous? Got a bad flu? Have you been poisoned? Not to worry, Cure-it-all is on the job! Just drink one full bottle and any ailment is annihilated instantly.’” I read. “So, the name’s not lying. It’s a cure-all antidote.” Sam said. “Hey, but this thing’s half full. It says here that only a full bottle can cure you.” I said, perplexed. “Hmmm… how strange. Why would there only be half?” Sam mused, in his familiar pose. “This could be important. I think you might’ve found something here, Gareth.” Sam said. I quickly wrote down the new info.   
  
**HALF-FULL ANTIDOTE ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Alright, I think that’s all we’ll find here. Talent Station?” I said. Sam nodded, “Talent Station.” We both quickly made our way over to the Talent Development Station. We weaved down the halls, and into Ultimate Detective’s Lab. Immediately, I could tell this was designed similarly to some sort of old-fashioned study. There was the pungent smell of aged books (not unlike in the library), various test tubes, a coat rack with the generic Sherlock Holmes attire (how fitting), a fireplace, and a small desk with a feather pen. “Alright, where’s what I’m looking for?...” Sam murmured to himself, going over to the bookshelf and pulling one out. “The Book of Many Mysterious Substances.” I read. “I came here the other day, and this book caught my eye. According to Monokuma, it can help me figure out an unidentified substance.” Sam explained. “That’s… rather convenient.” “Yes, but it would certainly explain the test tubes and various other gizmos.” He said, taking one of said test tubes and pouring what was left into a test tube. “Now, let’s see here… color is… purple.” He said, flipping to a page in the book. “According to this, it’s color could possibly mean it’s a specific kind of poison… but in order to see what kind, we have to see how it reacts to heat.” I bent down, opening the cabinet underneath the table, and pulling out a hot plate. “Here.” “Ok. Now, for the moment of truth…” Sam turned the hot plate on, put the test tube on, and waited. I took the time to form the thought from earlier. “Hey, Sam, after this… I think we should pay a visit to Chloé’s lab.” I said. “I think… you may be right.” He replied. Just at that moment, the liquid started to bubble. Sam quickly took the book out again, with a frightful look. “Just as I thought…” He murmured. “What? What is it?” “This liquid… it’s Instantinide.” “Instantinide?” “Instantinide is a poison that can kill anyone who breathes it in within 10 minutes. If it was in a perfume bottle…” Sam began. “Gareth, you were right. We need to check Chloé’s lab immediately. This is incredibly important.”

**INSANTINIDE REPLACED IN TRUTH BULLETS**

We darted over to Chloé’s lab, Sam still holding the book. We opened the door, and quickly began looking around. “Ah!” Sam exclaimed, pointing to a table in the middle. He dug his face in the book. “This is…!” Sam said. “Are those…?” “Yes! Those are all the ingredients to Insantinide!” Sam said. “So, we know there was Instantinide… but who could’ve used it? And who was it used on?” “I suppose… We’ll have to find out.” Sam said, pointing at the clock on the wall. “We’re pretty much out of time.” Sam said. “What?! But it feels like we’ve barely even checked anything!” “I know… but this is all we can do. At the very least, we  _ have _ evidence to use. But so far, not all of it makes sense.” Sam said. “But that’s what trials are for! So let’s quit griping, and just get to it!” Sam encouraged. With that, we left the Talent Development Station.

We went to the usual spot: the Monocube statue in front of the school. We all just stood there, in total silence. All of a sudden, Jasper’s voice perked up. “So, Sherlock, Gareth… do you guys have any idea who could’ve done this?” She asked. “No… but I’m sure we’ll find out!” I assured. Suddenly, she started to breathe heavier, and it looked like she was about to collapse. “Promise me… that you’ll put all the clues together… and… survive…” She rasped. “Wha? Whaddya mean? Aren’t you gonna help us?” Lyle questioned. “Just… survive… it’s all… I can ask… please, promise me… you’ll solve this mystery… and live!” She wheezed. “Uh, yeah, I… I promise!” I assured her. “Thank… you… Gareth…” Suddenly, she fell down on the ground. “J-Jasper?!” Dixie screamed. Then, as if this couldn’t get any worse, an all too familiar message played across the facility…

[ **_“A body has been discovered! And, what’s this?! How bizarre! It appears to have shown up RIGHT before the Class Trial! Puhuhuhu!”_ ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5SVx0Gst3c&t=14s)

“WHA-WHAT THE FUCK?!” Justine shouted. “No… no way… There’s no way in hell that just happened!” Lyle cried. I couldn’t even speak, I was just shocked. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Brandon rushing over to her. “ **_JASPEEEEER!!_ ** ” He shouted. “Why?! Why did this happen?!” He cried, gently holding her lifeless body off the ground. I heard him growl, and then he shouted: “ **_MONOKUMA! GET OUT HERE NOW!_ ** ” “Ta-daa!! Say my name and I magically appear!” the bear mocked. “Don’t give me that! How could you?! How could you possibly have let this happen?!” “Ha-wha? Whaddya mean? A death is a death!” Monokuma spouted. “Although, this is a special exception! A death before a trial… Ya don’t see that everyday! Puhuhuhu!” Once again, I heard Brandon growl. “So, since this is a special event, I’ll make a special exception! I’ll give you bastards  **_5 minutes_ ** to investigate!” “Wha- 5 minutes?!” Lyle yelled. “There’s nothing  _ to _ investigate! She just… died! Right in front of us!” Desiré cried. “Yep! But it’s mostly just a formality. I know you won’t really find much. Good luck! I’ll wait for you guys down there, m’kay?” Monokuma said, disappearing into what was probably the trial grounds.

Brandon looked down, and smashed his fist down into the ground. “Dammit! I can’t believe this!” “But even so… We don’t have a choice…” Kristina said, tears streaking down her face. Sam walked over to the body, and motioned me over. Brandon simply silently watched as Sam checked the body. “What is..?” Sam said, pulling out a letter. “‘I know who you are, and what you’ve done. If you want to face your past sins, come to the Red Cross at 9:00.’” Sam read. He and I both looked at each other, grave looks on our faces. 

  
  


**THREATENING LETTER ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Hm?” Sam looked at her neck. “There’s… purple? What the?” I said.

**MARKS ON NECK ADDED TO TRUTH BULLETS**

“Aaaaaalright! Time is up, so it’s time for you guys to go down! Puhuhu!” Monokuma’s omni-present voice sounded. We all silently marched into the elevator, frightened, but determined. Determined to solve this mystery. Determined to fulfill our promise.

Determined to survive. Jasper’s death might have been horrific, but it also gave us new resolve. And we’d need all the resolve we could get for this.

Hardly any incriminating evidence, not a clue as to a potential suspect. And yet, we continued, with Hope in our hearts. 

That’s what this was. Not just a chance to catch the killer, not just fulfilling our promise. But another battle between Hope and Despair. This time…

**_Our Class Trial is a deadly battlefield!_ **

……………………………………...

**MONOKUMA FILE 3:** The victim was Chloé Chanel. The death occurred at around 9:10 PM

**BODY’S LOCATION:** The body was found face-down in front of Medbay.

**PUDDLE OF BLOOD:** Chloé’s body was face down in her own blood.

**EMPTY PERFUME BOTTLE:** A metal perfume bottle which contained a purple liquid, but has since spilled most of its contents

**STAB WOUND:** A moderately-sized stab wound was on Chloé’s stomach.

**CAVED-IN SKULL:** Chloé’s skull was caved in. However, according to Sherlock, if this were her only wound, she could’ve survived.

**BROKEN WRIST:** Chloé’s wrist was broken.

**LIQUID ON FINGERS:** A small amount of purple liquid was found on Chloé’s fingers. Most likely leakage from her perfume bottle.

**HALF-FULL ANTIDOTE:** An antidote called “Cure-it-all” was found half-full in the Medbay.

**INSTANTINIDE:** A deadly poison, capable of killing anyone who breathes it in

**THREATENING LETTER:** A letter found on Jasper’s body, telling her to go to the “Red Cross” at 9.

**MARKS ON NECK:** Small purple marks were found on Jasper’s neck, similar to the ones on Chloé’s fingers.

……………………………………………….

  
  
  
  
  
  


Monokuma: “Welcome back, my little devas of destruction! You should all know the drill by now! So let’s hop to it!”

Brandon: “How? How can you be so callous as to what happened outside?”

Desiré: “I… I don’t think we have a choice, Brandon. We have no choice but to push past… her…”   
  


Justine: “I know we gotta… it’s just… it’s fucking unreal man.”

Samuel: “I know how you all feel, believe me. But we need to talk about the death that led us here in the first place.”

Luke: “Right. So, that begs the question; what do we talk about first?”

Dixie: “The Monokuma File doesn’t list the cause of death?”

Lyle: “Jeez, does it ever?”

Kasey: “Alright, let’s talk about that first then.”

**\-----** [ **NONSTOP DEBATE** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHMQMW8WTYk) **\-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: STAB WOUND**

Kasey: “So, since Sherlock and Gareth were the only ones to actually looked at the body…”   
  
Kasey: “What’d ya find?” 

Sam: “We found a stab wound, and that her skull was caved in.”

Kristina: “Is… that all?”

Sam: “Unfortunately so. Now it’s just a matter of hypothesis.”

Lyle: “Maybe she was  _ killed with that stab attack? _ ”   
  
Gareth:  **_“I agree with that!”_ **

………………………………………

Gareth: “I think you’re right, Lyle.”   
  
Lyle: “Woah, really? That’s good to hear.”

Gareth: “Sherlock mentioned that the wound on her head wouldn’t have been enough to kill her, so long as it was the only wound.”

Kristina: “That would mean… she was hit on the head first… and stabbed last…!”

Brandon: “Now, hold on a moment. We don’t know for sure that’s the correct order.”

Luke: “What makes you say that?”

Brandon: “It’s simple; I’m fairly certain none of us were there. Therefore, it would be foolish to attempt to ascertain which wound was required when.”

Lyle: “Well, one of us had to be there. Chloé wouldn’t be dead if that was the case.”

Justine: “Does it really matter right now? There’s something I can’t really figure out.”

Gareth: “What is it?”

Justine: “Why was she in front of Medbay? Like, why there?”

Desiré: “Well, let’s discuss it.”

**\-----** [**NONSTOP DEBATE** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHMQMW8WTYk) **\-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: PUDDLE OF BLOOD**

Kasey: “So: why was the body at Medbay?”

Luke: “Well, I  _ could just tell you all about it _ !”

Justine: “Dude, shut up. Seriously. This is important.”

Kristina: “I think… I noticed something… something important… at the crime scene…”

Dixie: “Well, whadja notice?”

Kristina: “Well… near the body… there was a set… of footprints…”

Luke: “Could ya talk a little bit faster there, shortie?”

Kristina: “Well, um… I just thought that… they would… y’know…”

Kristina: “that they probably  _ belonged… to the killer… _ ”

Gareth:  **_“No, that’s wrong!”_ **

…………………………………….

Gareth: “You’re talking about the footprints leading away from the body, right?”

Kristina: “Y...Yes, that’s correct.”

Gareth: “Uh, Kristina… I hate to say it, but… those were me and Sam’s footprints. We made them when we walked away from the body.”

Kristina: “Wha…? Oh, my gosh! I’m sorry!”

Gareth: “No, it’s fine. I mean, it makes sense; if I was in your position, I’d have thought the same thing.”

Luke: “Translation: Pay more attention next time, poindexter!”

Gareth: “That’s not even remotely close to what I meant.”

Justine: “Well, ignoring that, it didn’t answer my question. Why was she at Medbay?”

Desiré: “Well, let’s just keep talking about it then.”

**\-----** [ **NONSTOP DEBATE** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6av12TNw-0) **\-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: THREATENING LETTER**

Lyle: “So, what now?”

Kasey: “Ooh, ooh! Maybe we should just say theories and see what seems most likely!”

Brandon: “Do we really have time for something as tactless as that?”

Monokuma: “Time runs out when I get bored, so you’ve got at least another half an hour. Plenty of time to solve this crime!”

Justine: “Oooo...k? So what? Does anyone have anything?”

Kristina: “Maybe... she was sick?”

Sam: “If that were the case, why didn’t she just _go during_ _the day?_ ”

Kristina: “O-oh… I guess that would make sense…”

Dixie: “Hey, what if she was  _ lured there by something? _ ”   
  
Gareth:  **_“I agree with that!”_ **

…………………………

Gareth: “Dixie, I think you may be on to something!”

Dixie: “Damn, guess I’m not as bad at this I thought…”

Sam: “You’re right about one thing;  _ someone _ was lured there. But, I’m not entirely sure it was Chloé who was lured. In fact, I think it was Chloé who was doing the luring.”

Justine: “What makes you say that?”

Gareth: “When Jasper… died… we found this letter on her, telling her to meet someone at ‘The Red Cross’.”

Justine: “What the hell is ‘Red Cross’?”

Sam: “Probably just a different way of saying Medbay. Either that, or a riddle that would’ve led the receiver to the same conclusion.”

Lyle: “Wait, you said that letter was given to Jasper? Why her? Why would Chloé wanna meet with Jasper?”

Sam: “No idea. I’d say we talk about it and try to find out.”

**\-----** [ **NONSTOP DEBATE** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6av12TNw-0) **\-----**

**TRUTH BULLET: HALF-FULL ANTIDOTE**

Lyle: “So, Chloé lured Jasper to the Medbay… but why?”

Luke: “Why else wouldja lure someone somewhere in the middle of the night? Especially in a killing game?”

Kristina: “Ok, so, she lured Jasper there… to kill her?”

Desiré: “Wait, but that doesn’t make sense. She didn’t die then…”

Desiré: “She died  _ a few minutes ago! _ ”

Sam: “Chloé created a lethal poison called Instantinide. If Jasper was infected, she would be dead in at least 10 minutes.”

Brandon: “And yet, she persisted until the beginning of this trial.  _ How exactly was she able to manage this feat? _ ”

Gareth:  **_“I’ll show you how!”_ **

………………………………….

Gareth: “Me and Sam went to investigate the Medbay, and when we did, we found this; a half-full bottle of Cure-it-All.”

Brandon: “Ah, I see. She used a tonic to delay her untimely demise.”

Justine: “Hey, wait a sec. That bottle says you have to take the full thing in order to cure yourself. But Jasper only took half?”

Dixie: “Hey, you’re right! Why didn’t she drink the whole bottle?”

Luke: “Ah, it’s so good to watch all those rusty old gears in your brains turn.”

Justine: “What the fuck do you want, you god forsaken dickhead?”

Luke: “Well, see, I wanted to see how far you guys would get without  **_my help_ ** .”

Kasey: “Oh god, does he know everything already?”

Luke:  **_“Maybe I do, maybe I don’t. Zehahaha!”_ **

Justine: “Oh shit he knows everything already.”

Luke:  **_“Zehaha. You’re right; I’m already well aware of what happened. But I’m not quite satisfied with your performance yet, so I’ll give you a hint. But to be fair, you should’ve figured out what I’m going to say, haven’t you, Sherlock?”_ **

Sam: “...”

Luke:  **_“No words? Fine. I guess I have to spell it out for you. Or maybe Gareth can do that Hangman’s Gambit he likes so much!”_ **

I… hated to say it, but Luke was right. The clue… what could it be?

Luke: “Lemme point ya in the right direction. **_A knife couldn’t have made that wound._ ** ”

No. No no no. That can’t be. I refuse to believe it.

Gareth: “I… I don’t need a ‘Hangman’s Gambit’ to figure that one out…”

Luke:  **_“So, tell me; what made that wound?”_ **

Gareth: “... a sword…”

Luke:  **_“WHAT?! SPEAK UP! I CAN BARELY HEAR YOU!”_ **

Gareth: “It was made with a sword!”

I could already figure out where this was going. I just didn’t wanna believe it.

Luke:  **_“And tell me! Who here has a-”_ **

Brandon: “That’s enough! You’ve made your point.”

Luke:  **_“Ehhhh?”_ **

Brandon: “Alright, yes. I admit it. I was the one who slayed Chloé. ‘Twas by my blade she was slain.”

Desiré: “Is this… a confession?”

Kristina: “This… this can’t be true…!”

Lyle: “Brandon! Now’s no time for jokes, man!”

Brandon: “I can assure you, I am not joking.”

Lyle: “No, dammit! You’ve gotta be lying! You wouldn’t do something like this, man! You just…”

Brandon: “Lyle, you know as well as I do, it’s not a matter of whether it was in my nature or not; it’s whether or not I did it.”

Luke:  **_“And do it he did! Snuck up right behind her just as Jasper broke the poor girl’s wrist! And I was there to watch the whole thing go down!”_ **

This can’t be happening. I just can’t believe it. Brandon is the one responsible? Then why do I feel there’s something… missing?   
  
Brandon: “I had no choice! If I hadn’t done something, Jasper would have died!”

Luke:  **_“Fat load of good that did, eh?! Zehahahahaha!”_ **

Lyle: “Why, you little…!”

Wait, what’d Luke just say?

Brandon: “Control yourself! It matters not. After all, I’d say it’s about time for us to vote, wouldn’t you?”

Sam: “Y...yes, I guess it is…”

Kasey: “So the mystery is solved, right? We’re all done?”

No! We can’t be done! There’s something missing, I just can’t figure out what!

Justine: “Guess it’s time, then… Sorry ‘bout this, Brandon…”

Come on, Gareth! Think! What’s missing?!

_ I was there to watch the whole thing go down! _

Come on, harder! Think harder, God dammit!

_ A body has been discovered! _

Just a little more! It’s right there!

**_3 people need to find a body in order for the announcement to play!_ **

I-I GOT IT!  **_I GOT IT!!_ **

Gareth:  [ **_“Just one second!”_ ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6u97hS-4RQ&t=30s)

Lyle: “G-Gareth?!”

Luke: “Whaddya want, small fry?”

Gareth: “You say Brandon killed her, right?”

Luke: “Weren’t you listening at all?? We just said it. Let’s just get back to vo-”

Gareth: “Pipe down, pipsqueak! I’m not finished yet!”

Luke: “P-PIPSQEUAK?!”

Justine: “Bahahahaha! That’s a good one!”

Gareth: “Now, Luke, excluding Chloé, would you say there were 3 people at the Medbay at the time?”

Luke: “Yeah?”

Gareth: “Alright, good. Hey, Monokuma!”

Monokuma: “Hm? What is it?”

Gareth: “Remind me again: how many people does it take to set off the Body Discovery Announcement?”

Monokuma: “Ooh, I know! It’s 3 or more!”

Gareth: “Exactly. See where I’m going with this? Or do you need me to give you a hint?”

Luke:  **_“Grrrrrr….”_ **

Gareth: “Glad to see you’re following along.”

Desiré: “If that’s true, then…”

Luke: “Heh… haha… ZEHEHEHAHAHAHAHA!”

Gareth: “What’s so funny?”

Luke:  **_“I’ll bet you thought you were real clever when you thought that one up, huh? But tell me this! Who are you suggesting killed Chloé, hm?”_ **

He had a point. Again. But I had to do this. All the facts, all the evidence… this is where it’s led me!

So I’ve just gotta do it!

Gareth: “Here’s what I think happened, based on what we know;”

Gareth: “First, Jasper met Chloé in front of Medbay, just as planned. But she had 2 uninvited guests; you and Brandon.”

Gareth: “When Brandon saw Jasper was attacked, he quickly moved in and stabbed her. Then, after telling him to leave, Jasper layed the finishing blow; caving in her skull.”

Gareth: “Am I wrong?”

Luke:  **_“Or, consider this! Chloé attacked Jasper, just as you said, and Brandon swoops in to save her! Then, Chloé’s left to bleed out! How’s that sound?!”_ **

Gareth: “I guess I hadn’t considered that… but, if it’s a choice between the two, then I’ve made my choice!”

Kasey: “As much as I  _ really _ hate to say it… Luke has a point.”

Kristina: “It’s unfortunate… but he may be right…”

Justine: “I’m almost certain I’m gonna regret this, but there’s no way to make sure.”

Lyle: “Yeah? Well, I choose to believe in Brandon! He didn’t kill her!”

Dixie: “You sure? Are any of us sure?”

Monokuma:  **_“I see through your arguments!”_ **

Monokuma: “You guys are split down the middle once again! I was afraid you’d lost that since last trial! But, making it’s long-awaited re-entry into the story; the Morphenominal Trial Grounds!”

Once again, our podiums began floating upwards into the ceiling, and into the pure white room. We had to do this, right here, right now! On one side, Me, Lyle, Desiré and Sam. The other, Luke, Dixie, Justine, Kasey, Kristina, and… Brandon. No! Don’t focus on that! Focus on what we have to do.  **_No matter what, we have to do it! I won’t break the promise I made!_ **

**\-----** [ **SCRUM DEBATE** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32GWbQt_Zn4) **\-----**

**VOTE BRANDON! VS. VOTE JASPER!**

Brandon: “Say what you will, I was the one who  _ stabbed _ her!”

**_Lyle!_ **

Lyle: “Yeah, ya  _ stabbed _ her, not kill her!”

Luke: “How can you be  _ sure _ ?”

**_Desiré!_ **

Desiré: “We’re  _ sure _ ‘cus there wasn’t a Body Discovery Announcement!”

Justine: “How do we know she didn’t die  _ bleed out _ ?”

**_Sam!_ **

Sam: “They were right in front of Medbay, Jasper wouldn’t have let her  _ bleed out _ .”

Kristina: “But… she did bleed… so  _ why _ ”   
  
**_I’ll take this one!_ **

Gareth: “I think I have a pretty solid idea of  _ why _ it happened the way it did.”

Luke: “So?  _ What happened? _ ”

**_Lyle!_ **

Lyle: “You interfered, that’s  _ what happened! _ ”

**CROUCH BIND!**

**DISCUSSION ADVANCE!**

Brandon: “I will say it once more;  _ I did the deed _ !”

**_Lyle!_ **

Lyle: “And we’re saying that  _ you didn’t! _ ”

Luke: “All because of a  _ Body Discovery Announcement. _ ”

**_Desiré!_ **

Desiré: “A  _ Body Discovery Announcement _ no one heard!”

Luke: “ _ Why  _ are you willing to go this far?”

**_I’ll take this one!_ **

Gareth: “We’re keeping a promise, that’s  _ why _ .”

Luke: “Seriously? That’s all? A promise from some dead hussy?” 

Everyone: “ **_Dude!_ ** ”

Luke: “What’s wrong with you people? You’re gonna risk all our lives just cus you  _ believe?! _ ”

**_I’ll take this one!_ **

Gareth: “Mock us all you want; the only thing we can do right now… is  **_believe!_ ** ”

**CROUCH BIND**

**VOTE BRANDON VS VOTE JASPER**

**VOTE JASPER!**

Everyone:  **_“This is our answer!!_ ** ”

……………………………………

Gareth: “We’ve made our choice, but tell me one thing Luke; do you know who did it?”

Luke:  **_“Of course I do. I’m not telling you though! I wanna see you troglodytes die, after all! Zehahahaha!”_ **

Gareth: “That’s fine. So long as I know you were there, I think I have a solid grasp of what happened.”

Sam: “In that case… I leave it to you. Finish it, Gareth!”

Gareth: “My pleasure!”

**\----- CLOSING ARGUMENT -----**

[ **BEGIN REASONING:** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fx0ZLickoB0)

Alright, I figured most of it out, but some events are missing. Firstly, when did Chloé make the poison?…  **_When I saw her yesterday!_ **

Ok, that explains that. But, what about the marks on Jasper’s neck?…  **_Chloé must have choked her!_ **

Alright, one last thing… Why couldn’t Jasper help Chloé?...  **_Luke blackmailed her with the antidote!_ **

But why wasn’t Brandon there to see Luke?...  **_Jasper must’ve told him to run away so as to not get blamed!_ **

That’s it! I’ve figured it all out!

Gareth:  [ **_“Here’s what really happened!”_ ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uocHYbEbWSE&t=90s)

…………………………………………

**ACT 1** : It all began when Chloé had given Jasper that letter telling her to go to the Medbay at 9 PM. She’d been preparing a special poison, Instantinide, to use on someone. When Jasper eventually showed up, Chloé used the poison in her perfume bottle on Jasper. In retaliation, Jasper knocked it out of her hands, and, with her ludicrous strength, had actually broken Chloé’s wrist.

**ACT 2** : Then, in an act of desperation, Chloé went to attack Jasper, getting one of her hands around Jasper’s neck. What she didn’t know was that Brandon had followed them there, and when he saw Chloé attacking, he snuck up from behind, and stabbed her. However, it miraculously didn’t kill her. If it had, the Body Discovery Announcement would’ve played across the whole facility.

**ACT 3:** Wanting to protect her friend, Jasper ordered Brandon to run away. This is exactly what our fourth player, Luke, was hoping for. He waited until Jasper was all alone, gave her only half of the antidote, as insurance that she’d do what he said. And what exactly did he want her to do? He wanted her to finish Chloé off. Luke had probably noticed the lack of an Announcement as well, and wanted to capitalize on it to increase the chance of us getting ourselves killed. And so, Jasper, having no other choice but to cooperate, did what she had to do.. She smashed her fist down right on Chloé’s head!

**ACT 4:** Unfortunately for her, Luke didn’t hold up his end of the bargain. He didn’t give her the rest of the antidote, and, to add insult to injury, returned to the scene of the crime to return it, still half full, and then he came to the dining room to take us all to the body. 

Gareth: “That is the truth of this case! Chloé’s life wasn’t taken by her attacker;  **_It was taken by her victim!_ ** ”

……………………………………

Lyle: “So, I guess that’s that. Mystery solved once again.”

Kristina: “But… how will we vote…?”

Gareth: “Hey, Monokuma, quick question; can we vote for someone, even if they’re dead?”

Monokuma: “Yep! Just cus you leave this worldly plane doesn’t mean you’re any less responsible for the crimes committed there!”

Gareth: “Good. In that case, it’s time. Let’s do it, everyone.”

**\----- CLASS TRIAL COMPLETE! -----**

Again, the machine spun its wheels. Eventually, it landed on Jasper’s face, and confetti was sprayed everywhere. Then, Monokuma spoke; “Congratulations! You’ve gotten it right for the third time in a row! Unfortunately, our ever-exciting and entertaining Executions won’t be used this time. But there’s no use crying over spilt milk! I’ll just make the next one  _ even more special! _ ”

“See, Brandon? Didn’t I tell ya? Ya didn’t kill anyone!” Lyle said. Brandon breathed a sigh of relief, “Although it came at the cost of my friend’s life… I’m glad. Thank you, Gareth, for uncovering the truth.” He said. I gave him a thumbs up in return. “I’m actually impressed,  **_ass_ ** istant.” Luke said. “You even managed to figure out that I tricked that bitch into killing Chloé. Well done.” “Well, actually, I couldn’t have figured it out without you.” I said. “Huh?” “Without you revealing that you were there, I might not have figured out what happened. Matter of fact, if you think about it… you technically saved us all. We didn’t have to kill anyone this trial.” I said, knowing that Luke would get angry. 

Suddenly, that familiar malicious aura filled the air.  **_“Oh yeah? Ok then. No more horsin’ around. You wanna fuck with me like that? I’ll fuck you up right back. I’ll destroy the thing you care about most. Look forward to it, you worthless motherfucker.”_ ** He said, and he walked off. “Y’know, that guy is really fuckin’ creepy.” Justine said. “He sure is.” Lyle said. “I think that’s enough excitement for one day, everyone. Let’s get some rest.” Sam said. As we all walked back, Sam walked beside me. “Good job, Gareth. You really saved us this time.” He said. I rubbed the back of my head with one arm, flustered. “Uh, heh, it was, um, no big deal.” I said. “I’m serious, Gareth. You should be proud. We wouldn’t be having this conversation were it not for your quick thinking.” He said. “Y-yeah, I guess so, but…” “But what?” “...I wish she was here to stand with us, too.” I finished. Sam sighed, and pat my back.

I eventually got back into my room, and I plopped myself down onto my bed. Sighing, I closed my eyes, and drifted off to sleep…

……………………...

What... am I?

………………………

**_Chapter 3: Eye of Hawk, Will of Iron_ **

**_END_ **

  
  



End file.
